The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS – Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 21,300,000 shares, a growth of 5.4% from the October 31st total of 20,210,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 13,910,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.5 days.

Walt Disney Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DIS traded down $0.11 during trading on Friday, hitting $92.58. The company had a trading volume of 11,898,169 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,122,374. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.05. Walt Disney has a 12 month low of $78.73 and a 12 month high of $118.18. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $86.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $86.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $169.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 72.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.31.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 8th. The entertainment giant reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.15. Walt Disney had a return on equity of 7.31% and a net margin of 2.65%. The firm had revenue of $21.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.30 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Walt Disney will post 4.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Walt Disney Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 10th. Investors of record on Monday, December 11th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 8th. Walt Disney’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DIS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Credit Suisse Group dropped their target price on Walt Disney from $126.00 to $122.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 21st. Raymond James increased their price objective on Walt Disney from $93.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 10th. Rosenblatt Securities dropped their price objective on Walt Disney from $104.00 to $103.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Walt Disney in a research report on Thursday, October 5th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $103.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Guggenheim dropped their price objective on Walt Disney from $125.00 to $115.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $108.95.

Get Our Latest Stock Report on DIS

Institutional Trading of Walt Disney

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in DIS. Compton Capital Management Inc. RI boosted its position in Walt Disney by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Compton Capital Management Inc. RI now owns 20,689 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $2,838,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC boosted its position in Walt Disney by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC now owns 3,575 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $490,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in Walt Disney by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,479 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $348,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Mine & Arao Wealth Creation & Management LLC. boosted its position in Walt Disney by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Mine & Arao Wealth Creation & Management LLC. now owns 6,488 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $650,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Advisors of Iowa LLC boosted its position in Walt Disney by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Advisors of Iowa LLC now owns 4,805 shares of the entertainment giant’s stock worth $481,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.17% of the company’s stock.

About Walt Disney (Get Free Report)

The Walt Disney Company, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an entertainment company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution; and Disney Parks, Experiences and Products. The company engages in the film and episodic television content production and distribution activities, as well as operates television networks under the ABC, Disney, ESPN, Freeform, FX, Fox, National Geographic, and Star brands; and studios that produces films under the Walt Disney Pictures, Twentieth Century Studios, Marvel, Lucasfilm, Pixar, and Searchlight Pictures banners.

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Original: MarketBeat News Feed: The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest