Hantz Financial Services Inc. Lowers Holdings in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Hantz Financial Services Inc. trimmed its position in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 3.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 37,840 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 1,321 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $4,213,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of DIS. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted 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 acquiring an additional 3,399,359 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 2,765,389 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in Walt Disney by 114.4% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,307,794 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $414,582,000 after acquiring an additional 2,298,921 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in Walt Disney by 112.0% in the third 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. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Walt Disney by 3.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 37,672,320 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $3,609,833,000 after acquiring an additional 1,393,082 shares during the period. 65.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DIS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Walt Disney from $115.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Redburn Atlantic raised Walt Disney from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $100.00 to $147.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Macquarie reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $110.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price target on Walt Disney from $122.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.52.

Walt Disney Stock Up 0.8 %

DIS opened at $113.08 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The Walt Disney Company has a 12 month low of $83.91 and a 12 month high of $123.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $204.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.43. The business has a 50-day moving average of $112.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $100.33.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The entertainment giant reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 9.21% and a net margin of 5.44%. The business had revenue of $22.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.49 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.82 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Walt Disney

In related news, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 226,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,980,695.19. The trade was a 62.15 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.62, for a total value of $568,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at $5,005,529.10. This trade represents a 10.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 385,412 shares of company stock worth $44,153,263. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Walt Disney Company 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.