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

Flputnam Investment Management Co. raised its position in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 12.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 127,677 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after buying an additional 14,548 shares during the quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $11,528,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Avitas Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,037 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $997,000 after buying an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. WNY Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Walt Disney by 32.8% in the 3rd quarter. WNY Asset Management LLC now owns 9,321 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $756,000 after purchasing an additional 2,304 shares during the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Walt Disney by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,024 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $245,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC raised its position in shares of Walt Disney by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC now owns 12,722 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,031,000 after purchasing an additional 546 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stelac Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Walt Disney by 7.7% in the 3rd quarter. Stelac Advisory Services LLC now owns 68,909 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $5,598,000 after purchasing an additional 4,915 shares during the last quarter. 65.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Walt Disney

In related news, EVP Sonia L. Coleman sold 1,857 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.92, for a total value of $226,405.44. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $536,448. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Walt Disney Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DIS traded down $1.06 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $112.95. 9,223,682 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,299,698. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $112.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $97.68. The Walt Disney Company has a twelve month low of $78.73 and a twelve month high of $123.74. The firm has a market cap of $207.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 69.77, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The entertainment giant reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.25. Walt Disney had a net margin of 3.36% and a return on equity of 7.88%. The firm had revenue of $23.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $23.71 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.99 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that The Walt Disney Company will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Investors of record on Monday, July 8th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 8th. This represents a yield of 0.5%. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio is currently 55.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Raymond James increased their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $112.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $136.00 price objective on shares of Walt Disney in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Guggenheim increased their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $110.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets reissued a “buy” rating and set a $133.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a research report on Monday, April 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twenty-two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $124.54.

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.