Compass Capital Management Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Compass Capital Management Inc. trimmed its position in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 14.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,718 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 630 shares during the period. Compass Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $414,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 38.1% in the fourth quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 399 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new stake in Walt Disney in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. First PREMIER Bank raised its stake in Walt Disney by 98.1% in the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 517 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Walt Disney in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Walt Disney in the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. 65.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $110.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Walt Disney from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $100.00 to $147.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and issued a $125.00 price objective on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $120.00 price objective for the company. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Walt Disney has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $125.52.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.62, for a total value of $568,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at $5,005,529.10. The trade was a 10.19 % 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 company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 226,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,980,695.19. The trade was a 62.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 385,412 shares of company stock worth $44,153,263. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of Walt Disney stock opened at $114.10 on Tuesday. 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 company’s fifty day simple moving average is $112.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $100.66. The company has a market cap of $206.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.10, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.43. 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 announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The entertainment giant reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. Walt Disney had a net margin of 5.44% and a return on equity of 9.21%. The firm had revenue of $22.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.49 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.82 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.41 EPS for the current year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This is a boost from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. Walt Disney’s payout ratio is 36.90%.

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.