The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) was the target of a large drop in short interest in November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 18,800,000 shares, a drop of 5.1% from the November 15th total of 19,810,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 9,620,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.0 days. Currently, 1.0% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Insider Activity at Walt Disney

In other Walt Disney news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were 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 owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,005,529.10. This trade represents a 10.19 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total transaction of $42,667,242.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 226,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,980,695.19. This trade represents a 62.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In 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.

Institutional Trading of Walt Disney

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in DIS. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 35.7% during the 2nd quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,577 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $443,000 after acquiring an additional 1,205 shares during the last quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 12,353 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,202,000 after acquiring an additional 537 shares during the last quarter. XML Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 11,155 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,108,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Walt Disney during the 2nd quarter worth $898,000. Finally, KG&L Capital Management LLC raised its position in Walt Disney by 24.3% in the 2nd quarter. KG&L Capital Management LLC now owns 7,502 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $741,000 after purchasing an additional 1,469 shares during the period. 65.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DIS has been the subject of several analyst reports. Guggenheim increased their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Macquarie raised their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $91.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Walt Disney from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Raymond James restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $123.58.

Walt Disney Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:DIS opened at $112.11 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $105.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $98.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.67. Walt Disney has a one year low of $83.91 and a one year high of $123.74. The company has a market cap of $203.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.37, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.42.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last announced its quarterly 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 net margin of 5.44% and a return on equity of 9.21%. The firm had revenue of $22.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.49 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.82 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Walt Disney will post 5.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a yield of 0.6%. This is an increase from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.90%.

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.