Morton Capital Management LLC CA Boosts Stake in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Morton Capital Management LLC CA raised its stake in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 2.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,813 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the quarter. Morton Capital Management LLC CA’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $647,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in DIS. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Walt Disney during the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in shares of Walt Disney in the 4th quarter valued at about $49,000. First PREMIER Bank grew its position in shares of Walt Disney by 98.1% in the 3rd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 517 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Walt Disney during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $51,000. Finally, Birch Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Walt Disney during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $56,000. 65.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walt Disney Stock Down 1.7 %

Walt Disney stock opened at $106.38 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $192.65 billion, a PE ratio of 39.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.43. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $111.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $99.58. The Walt Disney Company has a 12 month low of $83.91 and a 12 month high of $123.74.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The entertainment giant reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $22.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.49 billion. Walt Disney had a net margin of 5.44% and a return on equity of 9.21%. The company’s revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.82 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

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 transaction of $917,920.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at $5,054,870.70. The trade was a 15.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total value of $42,667,242.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 226,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,980,695.19. This represents a 62.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 385,412 shares of company stock worth $44,153,263. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on DIS shares. Piper Sandler started coverage on Walt Disney in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $95.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Walt Disney from $116.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Guggenheim raised their price target on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Walt Disney from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $100.00 to $147.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.54.

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.