Essex Investment Management Co. LLC Has $2.76 Million Stake in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Essex Investment Management Co. LLC decreased its position in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 10.4% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 27,955 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 3,256 shares during the period. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $2,759,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Walt Disney by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 26,767 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $2,980,000 after purchasing an additional 1,904 shares in the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group increased its stake in Walt Disney by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 828,050 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $92,203,000 after purchasing an additional 54,775 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Walt Disney by 19.9% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 175,428 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $19,534,000 after purchasing an additional 29,096 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Walt Disney by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,665,066 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $964,855,000 after purchasing an additional 462,403 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AIA Group Ltd increased its stake in Walt Disney by 48.1% in the fourth quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 15,786 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,758,000 after purchasing an additional 5,129 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on DIS. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $120.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Loop Capital boosted their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Walt Disney from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $112.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities boosted their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Five 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $128.13.

Walt Disney Stock Down 0.9%

DIS opened at $120.36 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market cap of $216.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.61, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.56. The Walt Disney Company has a twelve month low of $80.10 and a twelve month high of $124.69. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $118.13 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $107.42.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The entertainment giant reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $23.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $23.15 billion. Walt Disney had a net margin of 9.47% and a return on equity of 9.99%. Walt Disney’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.21 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Walt Disney

In related news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.84, for a total transaction of $110,840.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 46,831 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,190,748.04. This represents a 2.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

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.