Walt Disney's (DIS) "Buy" Rating Reaffirmed at Needham & Company LLC

Key Points

• Walt Disney (DIS) maintains a "buy" rating from Needham & Company with a price target of $125.00, indicating an 8.40% upside potential from its current stock price.
• A total of 19 analysts have given Disney a "buy" rating, while the stock holds a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a price target of $129.83.
• In the latest quarterly results, Disney reported earnings of $1.61 per share, exceeding expectations of $1.45, with a revenue of $23.65 billion.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating reissued by equities research analysts at Needham & Company LLC in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $125.00 price objective on the entertainment giant's stock. Needham & Company LLC's price target points to a potential upside of 8.40% from the company's current price.

DIS has been the topic of several other reports. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Wolfe Research raised Walt Disney from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $112.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Walt Disney from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Walt Disney from $120.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $129.83.

Walt Disney Stock Down 2.5%

NYSE:DIS opened at $115.32 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. Walt Disney has a twelve month low of $80.10 and a twelve month high of $124.69. The company has a market cap of $207.31 billion, a PE ratio of 23.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.56. The company's 50 day moving average is $119.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $107.94.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The entertainment giant reported $1.61 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 analysts' expectations of $23.69 billion. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 9.99% and a net margin of 9.47%. The firm's revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.39 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Walt Disney will post 5.47 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.84, for a total value of $110,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 46,831 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,190,748.04. This represents a 2.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Walt Disney

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in DIS. Kondo Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Walt Disney by 1.2% in the second quarter. Kondo Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 7,317 shares of the entertainment giant's stock valued at $904,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walt Disney by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC now owns 5,890 shares of the entertainment giant's stock worth $730,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Walt Disney by 3.5% in the second quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 2,606 shares of the entertainment giant's stock worth $323,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,749 shares of the entertainment giant's stock valued at $341,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. Finally, Apollon Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 1.5% during the second quarter. Apollon Financial LLC now owns 6,086 shares of the entertainment giant's stock worth $755,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.71% of the company's stock.

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.

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