James P. Gorman Acquires 20,000 Shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) Stock

The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) Director James P. Gorman acquired 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $106.03 per share, for a total transaction of $2,120,600.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 20,467 shares in the company, valued at $2,170,116.01. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Walt Disney Stock Up 0.3 %

DIS traded up $0.36 during trading on Thursday, hitting $105.80. The company had a trading volume of 14,945,125 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,135,098. The company has a market capitalization of $194.07 billion, a PE ratio of 115.00, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.40. 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 Walt Disney Company has a one year low of $78.73 and a one year high of $123.74. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $114.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $101.24.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The entertainment giant reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.09. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 7.88% and a net margin of 3.36%. The company had revenue of $22.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.93 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that The Walt Disney Company will post 4.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walt Disney

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in DIS. Planned Solutions Inc. bought a new position in shares of Walt Disney in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Gold Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in Walt Disney during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Fortis Group Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Walt Disney in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Stone House Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 355.3% in the fourth quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 346 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Partnership Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walt Disney during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on DIS shares. Macquarie increased their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $94.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Daiwa Capital Markets reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $133.00 target price on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $136.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price objective on Walt Disney from $129.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Walt Disney from $130.00 to $128.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twenty-three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Walt Disney has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $126.46.

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.