Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Has $660,000 Stock Position in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund lessened its holdings in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) by 8.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 9,668 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after selling 864 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Western Digital were worth $660,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Eastern Bank bought a new position in shares of Western Digital in the third quarter worth $27,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD acquired a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Western Digital in the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Western Digital during the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Western Digital during the second quarter worth $34,000. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Western Digital Stock Performance

Shares of WDC opened at $64.58 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $66.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $69.26. Western Digital Co. has a 12 month low of $46.05 and a 12 month high of $81.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.99 and a beta of 1.40.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The data storage provider reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.55 by $0.23. Western Digital had a return on equity of 8.57% and a net margin of 4.81%. The business had revenue of $4.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($1.97) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 48.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Western Digital Co. will post 6.56 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Western Digital

In related news, EVP Robert Soderbery sold 30,767 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.01, for a total value of $2,092,463.67. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 135,398 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,208,417.98. The trade was a 18.52 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO David Goeckeler sold 75,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.58, for a total value of $5,443,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 821,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,633,905.40. The trade was a 8.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 188,561 shares of company stock worth $13,309,042 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WDC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price objective on Western Digital from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. BNP Paribas decreased their price target on shares of Western Digital from $95.00 to $90.00 in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Western Digital from $94.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Western Digital from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $87.71.

Western Digital 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.