Janus Henderson Group PLC Purchases 1,649,115 Shares of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)

Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) by 663.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,897,850 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,649,115 shares during the quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in Walt Disney were worth $232,217,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 84.6% during the 1st quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 2,000,267 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $244,754,000 after buying an additional 916,772 shares during the period. Avitas Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,037 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $997,000 after buying an additional 238 shares during the period. Telos Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Telos Capital Management Inc. now owns 74,767 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $6,751,000 after buying an additional 1,236 shares during the period. Valmark Advisers Inc. lifted its position in shares of Walt Disney by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 7,744 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $699,000 after buying an additional 359 shares during the period. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of Walt Disney during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,490,492,000. Institutional investors own 65.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on DIS shares. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 target price on shares of Walt Disney in a research report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Macquarie raised their price target on Walt Disney from $104.00 to $107.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. Daiwa Capital Markets reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $133.00 price target on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Monday, April 1st. UBS Group dropped their price target on Walt Disney from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Finally, Loop Capital dropped their price target on Walt Disney from $139.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $128.13.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director James P. Gorman purchased 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $106.03 per share, for a total transaction of $2,120,600.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 20,467 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,170,116.01. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, EVP Sonia L. Coleman sold 4,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.00, for a total value of $466,400.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director James P. Gorman purchased 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $106.03 per share, with a total value of $2,120,600.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 20,467 shares in the company, valued at $2,170,116.01. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Walt Disney Trading Up 1.8 %

DIS stock traded up $1.65 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $93.79. 9,515,639 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,326,335. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $99.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $105.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.75. The company has a market cap of $170.98 billion, a PE ratio of 100.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.40. The Walt Disney Company has a one year low of $78.73 and a one year high of $123.74.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The entertainment giant reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $22.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.12 billion. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 8.37% and a net margin of 1.90%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.93 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that The Walt Disney Company will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.