Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) Trading Up 0.1% After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) traded up 0.1% during mid-day trading on Tuesday after Argus raised their price target on the stock from $125.00 to $140.00. Argus currently has a buy rating on the stock. Walt Disney traded as high as $118.01 and last traded at $117.41. 1,794,491 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 86% from the average session volume of 12,424,792 shares. The stock had previously closed at $117.35.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Raymond James upped their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $112.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Macquarie upped their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $94.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $115.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. One equities 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat, Walt Disney has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Sonia L. Coleman sold 1,857 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.92, for a total transaction of $226,405.44. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,400 shares in the company, valued at $536,448. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Walt Disney during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Worth Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walt Disney in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Walt Disney in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Gold Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Walt Disney in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, SkyView Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 172.6% in the 2nd quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 319 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $78,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney Stock Down 0.7 %

The business’s 50 day moving average price is $112.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $97.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $214.96 billion, a PE ratio of 72.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.84.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The entertainment giant reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $23.71 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.99 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Walt Disney Company will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Walt Disney Cuts Dividend

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

About Walt Disney

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.