Bill Few Associates Inc. Increases Holdings in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Bill Few Associates Inc. grew its holdings in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 25,528 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 363 shares during the quarter. Walt Disney comprises 1.0% of Bill Few Associates Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Bill Few Associates Inc.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $2,843,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 66,744 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $6,420,000 after buying an additional 5,184 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Walt Disney by 1.1% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,411,205 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,001,454,000 after acquiring an additional 114,701 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management boosted its stake in Walt Disney by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 140,883 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $15,687,000 after acquiring an additional 13,339 shares in the last quarter. Summit Global Investments grew its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 476.0% during the third quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 12,379 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,191,000 after purchasing an additional 10,230 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Avanza Fonder AB acquired a new stake in shares of Walt Disney during the fourth quarter worth about $15,125,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney Price Performance

NYSE:DIS opened at $108.86 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $197.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.43. The Walt Disney Company has a 12-month low of $83.91 and a 12-month high of $123.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The company’s 50-day moving average is $112.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.90.

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

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This is a boost from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. This represents a dividend yield of 0.6%. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.90%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.74, for a total value of $917,920.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,054,870.70. This trade represents a 15.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total value of $42,667,242.84. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 226,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,980,695.19. This trade represents a 62.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 385,412 shares of company stock valued at $44,153,263 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on DIS. Rosenblatt Securities raised their price target on Walt Disney from $122.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Loop Capital upped their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Walt Disney from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Walt Disney currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $125.52.

Walt Disney Profile

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.