Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) Shares Gap Down – Time to Sell?

The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $103.08, but opened at $99.79. Walt Disney shares last traded at $99.33, with a volume of 1,998,281 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on DIS. Macquarie reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Walt Disney in a report on Monday, January 6th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $110.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of Walt Disney in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target 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, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Walt Disney from $116.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $125.64.

Walt Disney Trading Down 4.2 %

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $110.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $104.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $178.51 billion, a PE ratio of 32.16, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.62.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walt Disney news, EVP Brent Woodford sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.74, for a total transaction of $917,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,055 shares in the company, valued at $5,054,870.70. This trade represents a 15.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Walt Disney

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Walt Disney by 0.6% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 77,596,191 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $7,463,978,000 after acquiring an additional 490,681 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Walt Disney by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 38,482,309 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $4,272,590,000 after purchasing an additional 809,989 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Walt Disney by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 34,416,668 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $3,310,539,000 after purchasing an additional 2,765,389 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Walt Disney by 10.4% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 22,242,415 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock valued at $2,476,693,000 after buying an additional 2,096,431 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Walt Disney during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,415,427,000. 65.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.