Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC Sells 3,714 Shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC trimmed its position in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 12.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 26,000 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 3,714 shares during the period. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $2,895,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 77,596,191 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $7,463,978,000 after buying an additional 490,681 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Walt Disney by 3.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 37,672,320 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $3,609,833,000 after acquiring an additional 1,393,082 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Walt Disney by 8.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 34,416,668 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $3,310,539,000 after acquiring an additional 2,765,389 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in Walt Disney by 23.4% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 19,197,463 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $2,137,637,000 after purchasing an additional 3,636,742 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 3.4% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 13,850,678 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,332,297,000 after purchasing an additional 454,678 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DIS opened at $109.25 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $111.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $101.53. The Walt Disney Company has a 52 week low of $83.91 and a 52 week high of $123.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $197.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.59, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.42.

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

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. 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 payout ratio is currently 32.57%.

Insider Activity at Walt Disney

In other news, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 226,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,980,695.19. The trade was a 62.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,005,529.10. This trade represents a 10.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 385,412 shares of company stock worth $44,153,263. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on DIS. Evercore ISI lifted 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. Bank of America lifted their price target on Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $115.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Loop Capital increased their price target 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. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Walt Disney presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.85.

Walt Disney Company 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.