Walt Disney Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:DIS)

The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) saw unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Investors acquired 187,122 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 100% compared to the average daily volume of 93,440 call options.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Robert A. Iger sold 372,412 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 226,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,980,695.19. This trade represents a 62.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Brent Woodford sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.62, for a total transaction of $568,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,005,529.10. The trade was a 10.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 385,412 shares of company stock valued at $44,153,263 over the last 90 days. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walt Disney

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 66,744 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $6,420,000 after purchasing an additional 5,184 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,411,205 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,001,454,000 after purchasing an additional 114,701 shares in the last quarter. Summit Global Investments boosted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 476.0% during the 3rd quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 12,379 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,191,000 after purchasing an additional 10,230 shares in the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new stake in shares of Walt Disney during the 3rd quarter worth $14,079,000. Finally, Lmcg Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 18.6% during the 3rd quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC now owns 147,353 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $14,174,000 after purchasing an additional 23,116 shares in the last quarter. 65.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Loop Capital raised their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $116.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target 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, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.67.

Walt Disney Stock Performance

Shares of Walt Disney stock opened at $113.34 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $104.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $98.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $205.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.82, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.42. Walt Disney has a 12 month low of $83.91 and a 12 month high of $123.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 14th. The entertainment giant reported $1.14 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $22.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.49 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.82 EPS. Walt Disney’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Walt Disney will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a yield of 0.6%. This is a positive change from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.90%.

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.