Meyer Handelman Co. Sells 3,635 Shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Meyer Handelman Co. lowered its stake in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 11.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 27,843 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 3,635 shares during the quarter. Meyer Handelman Co.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $3,100,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its stake in Walt Disney by 53.5% during the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 4,033 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $449,000 after purchasing an additional 1,406 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its position in Walt Disney by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 70,226 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $7,818,000 after buying an additional 4,083 shares during the last quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Walt Disney by 33.8% in the fourth quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 4,762 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $530,000 after buying an additional 1,204 shares in the last quarter. Crestmont Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in Walt Disney during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $201,000. Finally, Pines Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walt Disney during the fourth quarter worth approximately $625,000. 65.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walt Disney Price Performance

Shares of DIS stock opened at $108.03 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $111.58 and its 200 day moving average is $99.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The stock has a market cap of $195.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.86, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.43. The Walt Disney Company has a twelve month low of $83.91 and a twelve month high of $123.74.

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

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 8,000 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.74, for a total value of $917,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at $5,054,870.70. The trade was a 15.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of Walt Disney 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly 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. Insiders have sold a total of 385,412 shares of company stock worth $44,153,263 over the last 90 days. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DIS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Raymond James reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Piper Sandler started coverage on Walt Disney in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America boosted their target price on Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Walt Disney from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $100.00 to $147.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Walt Disney from $115.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.54.

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.