Kentucky Retirement Systems Has $1.68 Million Stake in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC)

Kentucky Retirement Systems trimmed its holdings in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) by 5.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,624 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after selling 1,319 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Western Digital were worth $1,680,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Western Digital during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new stake in Western Digital during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Western Digital during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. acquired a new stake in Western Digital during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Western Digital by 121.7% during the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 614 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 337 shares during the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Western Digital Trading Up 2.7 %

WDC traded up $1.77 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $68.26. 4,473,066 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,035,107. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.29 billion, a P/E ratio of -13.73 and a beta of 1.37. Western Digital Co. has a 1-year low of $35.62 and a 1-year high of $81.55. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $75.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $67.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The data storage provider reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.42. The firm had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.37 billion. Western Digital had a negative return on equity of 13.75% and a negative net margin of 12.87%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 23.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($1.57) EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Western Digital Co. will post -1.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on WDC shares. Wedbush lifted their price target on Western Digital from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Bank of America raised their price objective on Western Digital from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Mizuho raised their price objective on Western Digital from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Western Digital from $65.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Western Digital from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $82.96.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 416 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.88, for a total value of $29,902.08. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,179,473.48. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 416 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.88, for a total value of $29,902.08. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,179,473.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Robert Soderbery sold 26,853 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.48, for a total value of $1,973,158.44. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 144,623 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,626,898.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 27,488 shares of company stock valued at $2,020,143. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Western Digital Company Profile

Western Digital Corporation develops, manufactures, and sells data storage devices and solutions in the United States, China, Hong Kong, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, rest of Asia, and internationally. It offers client devices, including hard disk drives (HDDs) and solid state drives (SSDs) for desktop and notebook personal computers (PCs), gaming consoles, and set top boxes; and flash-based embedded storage products for mobile phones, tablets, notebook PCs, and other portable and wearable devices, as well as automotive, Internet of Things, industrial, and connected home applications.