Townsend & Associates Inc Purchases 3,477 Shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Townsend & Associates Inc raised its position in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 2.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 149,641 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after buying an additional 3,477 shares during the quarter. Walt Disney makes up about 1.7% of Townsend & Associates Inc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Townsend & Associates Inc’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $16,266,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp boosted its position in Walt Disney by 0.6% in 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 during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Walt Disney by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 37,672,320 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $3,609,833,000 after buying an additional 1,393,082 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 8.7% in the 3rd 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 period. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 23.4% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 19,197,463 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $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 lifted its stake in shares of 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 valued at $1,332,297,000 after purchasing an additional 454,678 shares during the period. 65.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DIS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Walt Disney from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $135.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Walt Disney from $115.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Walt Disney from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on Walt Disney from $108.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.44.

Walt Disney Stock Performance

DIS opened at $108.62 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $110.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $102.49. The Walt Disney Company has a 1 year low of $83.91 and a 1 year high of $123.74. The company has a market capitalization of $196.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.62.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last released its quarterly earnings results 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%. Equities analysts expect that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This is a boost from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.6%. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.57%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.74, for a total value of $917,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at $5,054,870.70. This trade represents a 15.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.