Principal Financial Group Inc. Reduces Stake in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its position in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,042,243 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 16,680 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.11% of Walt Disney worth $227,404,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in DIS. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Walt Disney in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Walt Disney in the fourth quarter worth $43,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 38.1% during the 4th quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 399 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new stake in Walt Disney during the 4th quarter worth about $49,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in Walt Disney in the 4th quarter worth about $50,000. Institutional investors own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DIS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Loop Capital increased their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $137.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $135.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Monday, February 10th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.85.

Walt Disney Price Performance

Shares of Walt Disney stock opened at $110.31 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The Walt Disney Company has a 52 week low of $83.91 and a 52 week high of $123.74. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $111.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $101.90. The company has a market capitalization of $199.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.93, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.42.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The entertainment giant reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.32. Walt Disney had a net margin of 6.07% and a return on equity of 9.95%. As a group, analysts expect that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders 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 of this dividend 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 is 32.57%.

Insider Transactions at Walt Disney

In other news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $5,005,529.10. The trade was a 10.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 226,767 shares in the company, valued at $25,980,695.19. The trade was 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 valued at $44,153,263. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Walt Disney 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.