Handelsbanken Fonder AB Raises Stock Holdings in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 4.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 556,245 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after buying an additional 24,770 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $50,223,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of DIS. Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in Walt Disney in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Walt Disney during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Worth Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Walt Disney during the first quarter worth about $29,000. Fortis Group Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Walt Disney during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Stone House Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Walt Disney by 355.3% during the fourth quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 346 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the period. 65.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DIS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Daiwa Capital Markets reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $133.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $110.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Barclays upgraded shares of Walt Disney from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $95.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Argus boosted their price objective on Walt Disney from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on Walt Disney from $115.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $124.54.

Walt Disney Price Performance

DIS stock opened at $112.61 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $206.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 69.51, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.42. The Walt Disney Company has a twelve month low of $78.73 and a twelve month high of $123.74. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $113.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $98.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

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

Walt Disney Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 8th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 8th. Walt Disney’s payout ratio is currently 18.52%.

Insider Activity

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

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.