First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. Buys 4,790 Shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 5.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 92,457 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,790 shares during the quarter. Walt Disney accounts for about 2.1% of First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $10,295,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Retirement Planning Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 17.5% in the third quarter. Retirement Planning Group LLC now owns 4,241 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $408,000 after purchasing an additional 632 shares in the last quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH increased its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 38.3% in the third quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH now owns 2,591 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $249,000 after purchasing an additional 718 shares in the last quarter. Smith Chas P & Associates PA Cpas boosted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 2.9% during the third quarter. Smith Chas P & Associates PA Cpas now owns 5,476 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $527,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 8.1% during the third quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 3,615 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $348,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust boosted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 178.7% during the third quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 16,844 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,620,000 after acquiring an additional 10,800 shares during the last quarter. 65.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walt Disney

In other news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,005,529.10. This represents a 10.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total value of $42,667,242.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 226,767 shares of the company’s stock, 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. Insiders have sold 385,412 shares of company stock worth $44,153,263 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney Trading Down 1.5 %

NYSE DIS opened at $109.23 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $197.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.58, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.42. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $111.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $101.26. The Walt Disney Company has a 12 month low of $83.91 and a 12 month high of $123.74.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The entertainment giant reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.32. Walt Disney had a net margin of 6.07% and a return on equity of 9.95%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.43 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. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is a positive change from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on DIS. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $108.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Walt Disney from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $100.00 to $147.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Prescient Securities lowered their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $130.00 to $115.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $116.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $137.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Walt Disney presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $125.85.

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.