SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC Boosts Holdings in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 105.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,465 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after buying an additional 2,810 shares during the period. SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $609,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of DIS. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC boosted its position in Walt Disney by 38.1% in the 4th quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 399 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new stake in Walt Disney during the fourth quarter worth $49,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Walt Disney during the fourth quarter valued at $50,000. Birch Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Walt Disney in the fourth quarter valued at $56,000. Finally, First PREMIER Bank raised its position in shares of Walt Disney by 98.1% in the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 517 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney Stock Performance

Shares of Walt Disney stock opened at $113.04 on Friday. The Walt Disney Company has a 52 week low of $83.91 and a 52 week high of $123.74. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $112.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $100.62. The firm has a market cap of $204.43 billion, a PE ratio of 41.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last posted 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. Walt Disney had a net margin of 5.44% and a return on equity of 9.21%. The company had revenue of $22.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.49 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.82 earnings per share. Walt Disney’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 is a positive change from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. This represents a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on DIS shares. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on Walt Disney from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Guggenheim increased their target price on Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Rosenblatt Securities increased their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $122.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.52.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walt Disney news, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.57, for a total value of $42,667,242.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 226,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,980,695.19. The trade was a 62.15 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.62, for a total transaction of $568,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at $5,005,529.10. This represents a 10.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 385,412 shares of company stock valued at $44,153,263. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

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.