Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) Trading Up 0.9%

The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)’s stock price shot up 0.9% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $101.76 and last traded at $101.61. 1,676,811 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average session volume of 11,888,843 shares. The stock had previously closed at $100.66.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DIS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Walt Disney from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $100.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 21st. Loop Capital increased their price objective on Walt Disney from $113.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Walt Disney from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $129.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twenty-two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Walt Disney presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $126.29.

Walt Disney Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $185.51 billion, a PE ratio of 110.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.40. The business has a 50 day moving average of $112.52 and a 200 day moving average of $103.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.69.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The entertainment giant reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $22.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.12 billion. Walt Disney had a net margin of 1.90% and a return on equity of 8.37%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.93 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that The Walt Disney Company will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walt Disney

In other news, Director James P. Gorman bought 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $106.03 per share, with a total value of $2,120,600.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 20,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,170,116.01. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Sonia L. Coleman sold 4,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.00, for a total transaction of $466,400.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director James P. Gorman bought 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $106.03 per share, with a total value of $2,120,600.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 20,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,170,116.01. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Walt Disney

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 1.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 153,769,084 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $18,815,185,000 after acquiring an additional 2,325,582 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in Walt Disney by 0.4% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 44,318,444 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $3,592,010,000 after purchasing an additional 195,512 shares during the period. Trian Fund Management L.P. boosted its holdings in Walt Disney by 411.6% in the third quarter. Trian Fund Management L.P. now owns 32,868,307 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $2,663,976,000 after purchasing an additional 26,443,257 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Walt Disney by 10.6% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 24,859,476 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $2,014,861,000 after buying an additional 2,384,407 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in Walt Disney in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,938,647,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

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.