The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) Shares Sold by WealthBridge Investment Counsel Inc.

WealthBridge Investment Counsel Inc. reduced its position in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 0.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 64,386 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 100 shares during the period. Walt Disney makes up about 2.6% of WealthBridge Investment Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. WealthBridge Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $7,169,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 0.6% in the third 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 raised its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 1,393,082 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 8.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 34,416,668 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $3,310,539,000 after purchasing an additional 2,765,389 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 14,281,047 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,417,958,000 after purchasing an additional 425,438 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in Walt Disney by 3.4% in the 3rd 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 worth $1,332,297,000 after purchasing an additional 454,678 shares in the last quarter. 65.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Walt Disney

In other Walt Disney news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.74, for a total transaction of $917,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at $5,054,870.70. This represents a 15.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total value of $42,667,242.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 226,767 shares in the company, valued at $25,980,695.19. The trade was a 62.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 385,412 shares of company stock worth $44,153,263. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Walt Disney Price Performance

NYSE DIS opened at $107.07 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $193.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.43. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $112.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.67. The Walt Disney Company has a fifty-two week low of $83.91 and a fifty-two week high of $123.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The entertainment giant reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $22.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.49 billion. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 9.21% and a net margin of 5.44%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.82 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is an increase from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. This represents a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.90%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DIS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Walt Disney from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $100.00 to $147.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $116.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Walt Disney from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on Walt Disney from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Five investment 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, Walt Disney currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.54.

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.