Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Raises Stock Holdings in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Key Points

• Resona Asset Management has increased its stake in The Walt Disney Company by 10.5% in the first quarter, now owning over 1 million shares valued at about $103.57 million.
• Multiple institutional investors, including Nuveen LLC and Diamond Hill Capital Management, have significantly increased their positions in Disney, highlighting a trend of growing confidence in the company's stock.
• Analyst ratings for Disney have improved, with firms like Morgan Stanley raising their price target from $120 to $140 and the stock receiving a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS - Free Report) by 10.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,050,930 shares of the entertainment giant's stock after buying an additional 99,703 shares during the quarter. Walt Disney accounts for about 0.6% of Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.06% of Walt Disney worth $103,574,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walt Disney in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,353,607,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main boosted its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 1,900.0% in the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 5,735,961 shares of the entertainment giant's stock valued at $638,699,000 after purchasing an additional 5,449,158 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 21.8% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 16,867,017 shares of the entertainment giant's stock valued at $1,878,142,000 after purchasing an additional 3,016,339 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 1,080.7% in the first quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,816,548 shares of the entertainment giant's stock valued at $277,993,000 after purchasing an additional 2,578,004 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 1.6% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 155,862,361 shares of the entertainment giant's stock valued at $15,383,615,000 after purchasing an additional 2,446,087 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 65.71% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DIS has been the subject of a number of research reports. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Walt Disney from $134.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Walt Disney from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Walt Disney from $120.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Walt Disney has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $131.18.

Walt Disney Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of DIS traded down $0.30 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $116.34. 6,607,005 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,837,803. The stock has a market capitalization of $209.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm's fifty day moving average is $119.22 and its 200-day moving average is $108.08. The Walt Disney Company has a 1 year low of $80.10 and a 1 year high of $124.69.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The entertainment giant reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $23.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.69 billion. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 9.67% and a net margin of 12.22%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.39 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Walt Disney Company will post 5.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Walt Disney 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.