Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Price Target Lowered to $72.00 at UBS Group

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) had its price objective decreased by UBS Group from $74.00 to $72.00 in a research report report published on Thursday morning. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the data storage provider’s stock.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. BNP Paribas dropped their target price on Western Digital from $95.00 to $90.00 in a report on Thursday. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Western Digital from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $80.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Summit Insights downgraded shares of Western Digital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $83.95.

Western Digital Stock Down 0.4 %

WDC stock opened at $66.32 on Thursday. Western Digital has a 12 month low of $35.62 and a 12 month high of $81.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The company has a market cap of $22.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -36.44 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $65.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $69.73.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The data storage provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.17. Western Digital had a negative net margin of 3.75% and a negative return on equity of 2.63%. The business had revenue of $3.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.77 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that Western Digital will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Digital

In other news, CEO David Goeckeler sold 75,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.32, for a total transaction of $5,274,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 896,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $63,051,021.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 417 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.89, for a total value of $27,059.13. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 28,870 shares in the company, valued at $1,873,374.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO David Goeckeler sold 75,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.32, for a total value of $5,274,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 896,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $63,051,021.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 92,955 shares of company stock valued at $6,327,560 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in shares of Western Digital by 1.3% in the second quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 15,962 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $1,209,000 after buying an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its position in Western Digital by 15.6% during the second quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,527 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $116,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. grew its stake in Western Digital by 10.7% in the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 2,203 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $167,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the period. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. raised its holdings in Western Digital by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 10,344 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $784,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Western Digital by 51.2% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 818 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the period. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.