The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) Shares Purchased by Eastern Bank

Eastern Bank boosted its stake in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,781 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 372 shares during the quarter. Eastern Bank’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $3,427,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,075 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $454,000 after acquiring an additional 334 shares in the last quarter. Elmwood Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in Walt Disney by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Elmwood Wealth Management Inc. now owns 13,460 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,499,000 after buying an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. Forza Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Walt Disney by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Forza Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,173 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $799,000 after acquiring an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. Cooper Financial Group raised its position in shares of Walt Disney by 196.2% during the 4th quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 20,380 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $2,269,000 after acquiring an additional 13,499 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital boosted its holdings in Walt Disney by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 17,795 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,933,000 after purchasing an additional 1,506 shares during the period. 65.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Walt Disney

In related news, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total transaction of $42,667,242.84. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 226,767 shares in the company, valued at $25,980,695.19. This represents a 62.15 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.62, for a total value of $568,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at $5,005,529.10. The trade was a 10.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 385,412 shares of company stock worth $44,153,263. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on DIS shares. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price target on Walt Disney from $122.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on Walt Disney from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.54.

Walt Disney Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of Walt Disney stock traded down $0.57 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $108.08. 4,382,684 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,527,829. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.73. The Walt Disney Company has a 52 week low of $83.91 and a 52 week high of $123.74. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $111.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $99.43. The company has a market cap of $195.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.43.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The entertainment giant reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $22.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.49 billion. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 9.21% and a net margin of 5.44%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.82 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.50 dividend. This is a positive change from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.6%. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.90%.

About Walt Disney

The Walt Disney Company operates as an entertainment company worldwide. It operates through three segments: Entertainment, Sports, and Experiences. The company produces and distributes film and television video streaming content under the ABC Television Network, Disney, Freeform, FX, Fox, National Geographic, and Star brand television channels, as well as ABC television stations and A+E television networks; and produces original content under the ABC Signature, Disney Branded Television, FX Productions, Lucasfilm, Marvel, National Geographic Studios, Pixar, Searchlight Pictures, Twentieth Century Studios, 20th Television, and Walt Disney Pictures banners.