Searle & CO. Sells 918 Shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Searle & CO. cut its stake in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 3.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,545 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 918 shares during the period. Searle & CO.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $2,036,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Planned Solutions Inc. bought a new position in Walt Disney in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Fortis Group Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Walt Disney during the third quarter valued at $30,000. Stone House Investment Management LLC grew its position in Walt Disney by 355.3% during the fourth quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 346 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Evolution Advisers Inc. increased its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walt Disney in the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. 65.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Sonia L. Coleman sold 1,857 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.92, for a total transaction of $226,405.44. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $536,448. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Rosenblatt Securities upped their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $129.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on Walt Disney from $115.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. Finally, Macquarie raised their price objective on Walt Disney from $94.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twenty-two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $125.08.

Walt Disney Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of DIS traded down $0.62 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $110.48. 6,326,484 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,621,839. The firm has a market capitalization of $202.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 68.18, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.42. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $114.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $100.25. The Walt Disney Company has a 1 year low of $78.73 and a 1 year 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.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The entertainment giant reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $23.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.71 billion. Walt Disney had a net margin of 3.36% and a return on equity of 7.88%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.99 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Walt Disney Company will post 4.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Investors of record on Monday, July 8th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 8th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.5%. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.52%.

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.