United Asset Strategies Inc. Trims Holdings in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

United Asset Strategies Inc. trimmed its position in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 0.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 56,070 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 167 shares during the quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $5,063,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DIS. Markel Corp boosted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Markel Corp now owns 1,922,665 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $263,713,000 after acquiring an additional 42,500 shares during the last quarter. Fairfield Bush & CO. lifted its position in Walt Disney by 3.4% in the first quarter. Fairfield Bush & CO. now owns 9,624 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,320,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. United Bank increased its stake in Walt Disney by 8.7% in the first quarter. United Bank now owns 9,949 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,365,000 after purchasing an additional 794 shares during the period. AMI Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Walt Disney by 4.6% in the first quarter. AMI Investment Management Inc. now owns 24,918 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $3,418,000 after purchasing an additional 1,094 shares during the period. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its stake in Walt Disney by 0.6% in the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 828,308 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $113,611,000 after purchasing an additional 4,722 shares during the period. 65.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on DIS shares. Bank of America raised their price target on Walt Disney from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Macquarie raised their price target on Walt Disney from $94.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Walt Disney from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target 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, Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on Walt Disney from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twenty-two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $124.54.

Walt Disney Stock Up 1.2 %

NYSE DIS traded up $1.34 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $114.29. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,468,228 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,168,607. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The company has a market cap of $209.64 billion, a PE ratio of 70.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.42. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $113.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $97.91. The Walt Disney Company has a fifty-two week low of $78.73 and a fifty-two week high of $123.74.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The entertainment giant reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.25. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 7.88% and a net margin of 3.36%. The firm had revenue of $23.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.99 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Walt Disney Company will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walt Disney Cuts Dividend

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

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.