Sonora Investment Management Group LLC Boosts Stock Position in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Sonora Investment Management Group LLC raised its stake in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 85,691 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after buying an additional 1,852 shares during the quarter. Sonora Investment Management Group LLC’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $9,542,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp grew its position in Walt Disney by 0.6% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 77,596,191 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $7,463,978,000 after acquiring an additional 490,681 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 37,672,320 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $3,609,833,000 after purchasing an additional 1,393,082 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 8.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 34,416,668 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $3,310,539,000 after purchasing an additional 2,765,389 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 13,850,678 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,332,297,000 after purchasing an additional 454,678 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Walt Disney by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,411,205 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,001,454,000 after purchasing an additional 114,701 shares during the last quarter. 65.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Walt Disney from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $100.00 to $147.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Walt Disney from $116.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Walt Disney from $108.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.52.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.74, for a total value of $917,920.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,054,870.70. The trade was a 15.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total transaction of $42,667,242.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 226,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,980,695.19. This trade represents a 62.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 385,412 shares of company stock valued at $44,153,263 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney Stock Up 0.1 %

DIS stock opened at $113.30 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $204.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.81, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The Walt Disney Company has a twelve month low of $83.91 and a twelve month high of $123.74. The company’s 50 day moving average is $112.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $100.44.

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

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This is an increase from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.90%.

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.