Sapient Capital LLC Lowers Stake in The Walt Disney Company $DIS

Sapient Capital LLC lowered its holdings in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 20.4% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 244,980 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 62,750 shares during the period. Sapient Capital LLC’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $23,763,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in Walt Disney by 29.2% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,522,860 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $969,646,000 after purchasing an additional 1,924,200 shares during the last quarter. Aviva PLC raised its holdings in Walt Disney by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 1,516,177 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $172,495,000 after buying an additional 78,914 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors raised its holdings in Walt Disney by 18.8% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 96,476 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $10,976,000 after buying an additional 15,243 shares during the last quarter. Windsor Advisory Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 297.9% in the first quarter. Windsor Advisory Group LLC now owns 10,082 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $972,000 after buying an additional 7,548 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Xponance LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. Xponance LLC now owns 291,158 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $33,125,000 after buying an additional 20,266 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Walt Disney this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raise targets and reaffirm Buy ratings. Wells Fargo lifted its target to $132, Argus set a $134 target, and Barclays raised its target to $115 while maintaining an Overweight rating. Other firms, including Benchmark, Guggenheim, Rosenblatt and Needham, also reiterated bullish views. Are Wall Street Analysts Bullish on Walt Disney Stock?
• Positive Sentiment: Streaming momentum is improving. Disney’s streaming business delivered sharply higher profits, while Warner Bros. Discovery said the Disney+, Hulu and Max bundle is reducing churn and improving subscriber growth. Disney also plans to expand Disney+ into a broader ecosystem involving games, merchandise and interactive experiences. Warner Bros. Discovery Says Disney Bundle Is Delivering
• Positive Sentiment: Management strengthened its shareholder-return outlook. Disney reaffirmed its earnings-growth guidance and increased planned share repurchases to at least $9 billion, supporting per-share earnings and signaling confidence in future cash generation. Disney Q3 Earnings Call Highlights Parks and Streaming Growth
• Positive Sentiment: ESPN’s NFL strategy is gaining traction. Disney has already sold out advertising inventory for Super Bowl LXI, which ESPN will broadcast in 2027, highlighting strong demand for premium sports advertising.
• Neutral Sentiment: The TikTok partnership could expand Disney’s reach. Allowing creators to use Disney characters and distribute short-form videos on TikTok and Disney+ may deepen engagement, although the deal’s direct financial impact remains uncertain. Disney and TikTok Strike Short-Form Video-Sharing Deal
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue slightly missed expectations. Quarterly revenue of roughly $25.2 billion came in below the approximately $25.4 billion consensus forecast. Investors also remain cautious because DIS has underperformed the broader market and remains well below its 12-month high.
• Negative Sentiment: Growth concerns have not disappeared. A potential free, ad-supported streaming tier could broaden Disney’s audience but may pressure average revenue per user and increase execution risk. Some investors also question whether recent gains from blockbuster content and theme parks can be sustained.

Walt Disney Stock Performance

Shares of DIS opened at $104.92 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The Walt Disney Company has a one year low of $92.18 and a one year high of $119.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $181.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.63, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.39. The business has a fifty day moving average of $98.93 and a 200 day moving average of $101.84.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The entertainment giant reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.20. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 9.90% and a net margin of 8.70%.The company had revenue of $25.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.39 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.61 earnings per share. Walt Disney’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Walt Disney has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.642-6.642 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Walt Disney Company will post 6.91 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Phillip Securities raised Walt Disney from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Argus reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $134.00 target price on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Thursday. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Thursday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Friday, June 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $128.61.

Walt Disney Company Profile

The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS), commonly known as Disney, is a diversified global entertainment and media conglomerate headquartered in Burbank, California. Founded in 1923 by Walt and Roy O. Disney, the company grew from an animation studio into a multi?national entertainment enterprise known for iconic intellectual property and family?oriented storytelling. Disney’s operations span film and television production, streaming services, theme parks and resorts, consumer products, and live entertainment.

On the content side, Disney produces and distributes feature films and television programming through a portfolio of studios and labels that includes Walt Disney Pictures, Pixar, Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm and 20th Century Studios, along with broadcast and cable networks such as ABC, FX and National Geographic.