Ballast Inc. Increases Holdings in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Ballast Inc. increased its stake in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,207 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 614 shares during the period. Ballast Inc.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $1,471,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Farmers Trust Co. boosted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Farmers Trust Co. now owns 8,483 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $945,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. Saxon Interests Inc. lifted its stake in Walt Disney by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Saxon Interests Inc. now owns 3,412 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $380,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co boosted its holdings in Walt Disney by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 18,869 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,809,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Drucker Wealth 3.0 LLC grew its position in Walt Disney by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Drucker Wealth 3.0 LLC now owns 11,657 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $1,121,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Connable Office Inc. increased its stake in Walt Disney by 0.3% during the third quarter. Connable Office Inc. now owns 35,048 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $3,371,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. 65.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Walt Disney Trading Up 0.6 %

DIS opened at $107.07 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The Walt Disney Company has a 52 week low of $83.91 and a 52 week high of $123.74. The business’s 50 day moving average is $112.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.67. The firm has a market cap of $193.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.43.

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. The business had revenue of $22.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.49 billion. Walt Disney had a net margin of 5.44% and a return on equity of 9.21%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.82 EPS. On average, research analysts predict 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 $0.50 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is a boost from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $25,980,695.19. The trade was a 62.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Brent Woodford sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $5,054,870.70. This represents a 15.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 385,412 shares of company stock valued at $44,153,263 over the last quarter. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. 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. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on Walt Disney from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Raymond James reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Walt Disney from $115.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Loop Capital increased their price target on Walt Disney from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $125.54.

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.