GAMMA Investing LLC Purchases 3,299 Shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 16.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 22,974 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,299 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $2,558,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of DIS. Farallon Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Walt Disney during the second quarter worth about $355,673,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 12,574.4% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,426,393 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $329,585,000 after acquiring an additional 3,399,359 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position 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 valued at $3,310,539,000 after acquiring an additional 2,765,389 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 114.4% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,307,794 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $414,582,000 after purchasing an additional 2,298,921 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in Walt Disney by 112.0% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,142,991 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $398,508,000 after purchasing an additional 2,188,610 shares in the last quarter. 65.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walt Disney Stock Performance

Walt Disney stock opened at $110.82 on Friday. The Walt Disney Company has a 1-year low of $83.91 and a 1-year high of $123.74. The firm has a market cap of $200.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.42. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average of $109.06 and a 200-day moving average of $99.01.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The entertainment giant reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 9.21% and a net margin of 5.44%. The business had revenue of $22.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.49 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.82 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.41 EPS for the current year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is an increase from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. This represents a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. Walt Disney’s payout ratio is presently 36.90%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Raymond James restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Walt Disney in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Walt Disney in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $120.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price objective on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $123.58.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walt Disney news, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total transaction of $42,667,242.84. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 226,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,980,695.19. This represents a 62.15 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.62, for a total value of $568,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,005,529.10. The trade was a 10.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 385,412 shares of company stock worth $44,153,263. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.