Van ECK Associates Corp Raises Stake in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 7.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 3,808,061 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after buying an additional 272,591 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned approximately 0.21% of Walt Disney worth $343,830,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Evolution Advisers Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 38.2% in the 4th quarter. Evolution Advisers Inc. now owns 380 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Gradient Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Gradient Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,975 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $359,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. First Business Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. First Business Financial Services Inc. now owns 16,514 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,338,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares during the period. Kelman Lazarov Inc. increased its holdings in Walt Disney by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Kelman Lazarov Inc. now owns 3,583 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $324,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CoreCap Advisors LLC raised its stake in Walt Disney by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 24,096 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $2,176,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of DIS traded down $0.67 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $112.06. 7,167,296 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,728,643. The Walt Disney Company has a 12 month low of $78.73 and a 12 month high of $123.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $114.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $99.86. The company has a market capitalization of $205.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 69.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.42.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The entertainment giant reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $23.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $23.71 billion. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 7.88% and a net margin of 3.36%. The business’s revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.99 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that The Walt Disney Company will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 8th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 8th. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio is currently 55.56%.

Insider Activity

In other Walt Disney news, EVP Sonia L. Coleman sold 1,857 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.92, for a total value of $226,405.44. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,400 shares in the company, valued at $536,448. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DIS has been the subject of a number of research reports. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Macquarie boosted their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $94.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $136.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Walt Disney from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Raymond James raised their target price on Walt Disney from $112.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twenty-two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Walt Disney currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.08.

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.