Flputnam Investment Management Co. Grows Stock Position in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Flputnam Investment Management Co. grew its stake in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 127,350 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after buying an additional 1,698 shares during the quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $14,180,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 490,681 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 3.8% during 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 purchasing an additional 1,393,082 shares in 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 boosted its holdings in Walt Disney by 23.4% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 19,197,463 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $2,137,637,000 after buying an additional 3,636,742 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Walt Disney by 15.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 17,104,295 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,904,563,000 after buying an additional 2,300,912 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Walt Disney

In related news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,054,870.70. This represents a 15.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DIS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $137.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Redburn Atlantic raised Walt Disney from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $100.00 to $147.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Walt Disney from $115.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $125.44.

Walt Disney Stock Performance

Shares of Walt Disney stock opened at $113.82 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.68. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $110.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $103.23. The company has a market cap of $205.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.08, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.42. The Walt Disney Company has a one year low of $83.91 and a one year high of $123.74.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The entertainment giant reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, research analysts predict that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.47 EPS for the current year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

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

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.