Savant Capital LLC Raises Stock Position in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Savant Capital LLC grew its holdings in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 5.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 65,140 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,186 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $7,253,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in DIS. Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 23.4% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 19,197,463 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $2,137,637,000 after acquiring an additional 3,636,742 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Walt Disney by 12,574.4% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,426,393 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $329,585,000 after buying an additional 3,399,359 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its stake in Walt Disney by 8.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 34,416,668 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $3,310,539,000 after buying an additional 2,765,389 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in Walt Disney by 114.4% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,307,794 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $414,582,000 after buying an additional 2,298,921 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in Walt Disney by 112.0% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,142,991 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $398,508,000 after buying an additional 2,188,610 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on DIS. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $115.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $108.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued 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 a consensus price target of $125.85.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walt Disney

In other news, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total transaction of $42,667,242.84. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.62, for a total transaction of $568,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,005,529.10. The trade was a 10.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 385,412 shares of company stock valued at $44,153,263 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney Stock Performance

Shares of DIS opened at $109.23 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $111.87 and its 200-day moving average is $101.26. The Walt Disney Company has a 12 month low of $83.91 and a 12 month high of $123.74. The firm has a market cap of $197.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The entertainment giant reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.32. Walt Disney had a net margin of 6.07% and a return on equity of 9.95%. Equities analysts expect that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This is an increase from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. This represents a yield of 0.6%. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio is 32.57%.

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.