Maple Capital Management Inc. Reduces Stock Position in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Maple Capital Management Inc. cut its stake in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 26.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,839 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after selling 1,370 shares during the quarter. Maple Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $427,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of DIS. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Walt Disney by 23.4% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 19,197,463 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $2,137,637,000 after buying an additional 3,636,742 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Walt Disney by 8.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 34,416,668 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $3,310,539,000 after buying an additional 2,765,389 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Walt Disney by 15.5% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 17,104,295 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $1,904,563,000 after buying an additional 2,300,912 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in Walt Disney by 114.4% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,307,794 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $414,582,000 after buying an additional 2,298,921 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in Walt Disney by 112.0% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,142,991 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $398,508,000 after buying an additional 2,188,610 shares during the period. 65.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walt Disney Trading Up 2.3 %

Shares of DIS stock opened at $113.82 on Friday. The Walt Disney Company has a 12-month low of $83.91 and a 12-month high of $123.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $110.68 and its 200 day moving average is $103.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $205.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.42.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The entertainment giant reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.32. Walt Disney had a net margin of 6.07% and a return on equity of 9.95%. Research analysts expect that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Walt Disney Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a boost from Walt Disney’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.6%. Walt Disney’s payout ratio is 32.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $116.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Bank of America raised their target price 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. Macquarie reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $110.00 target price on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $115.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on shares of Walt Disney from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.44.

Insider Activity at Walt Disney

In related news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 8,000 shares of Walt Disney stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.74, for a total transaction of $917,920.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,054,870.70. The trade was a 15.37 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.