Farmers Trust Co. Boosts Holdings in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Farmers Trust Co. raised its stake in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,483 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. Farmers Trust Co.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $945,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Farallon Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walt Disney during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $355,673,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Walt Disney by 12,574.4% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,426,393 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $329,585,000 after buying an additional 3,399,359 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Walt Disney by 8.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 34,416,668 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $3,310,539,000 after buying an additional 2,765,389 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in shares of 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 valued at $414,582,000 after buying an additional 2,298,921 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in Walt Disney by 112.0% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,142,991 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $398,508,000 after acquiring an additional 2,188,610 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Walt Disney Stock Down 1.5 %

Walt Disney stock traded down $1.69 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $109.70. The stock had a trading volume of 4,830,867 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,988,187. The Walt Disney Company has a 52-week low of $83.91 and a 52-week high of $123.74. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $110.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $99.28. The stock has a market cap of $198.66 billion, a PE ratio of 40.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

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

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This is a positive change from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. This represents a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.90%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Raymond James reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Walt Disney from $115.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Rosenblatt Securities increased their price objective on Walt Disney from $122.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $120.00 price target on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Walt Disney currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $125.54.

About Walt Disney

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.