Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) SVP Sells $19,776.72 in Stock

Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 456 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.37, for a total transaction of $19,776.72. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 43,320 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,878,788.40. This represents a 1.04 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Western Digital Trading Up 5.9 %

NASDAQ:WDC opened at $44.53 on Friday. Western Digital Co. has a 12-month low of $39.42 and a 12-month high of $81.55. The firm has a market cap of $15.49 billion, a PE ratio of 10.60 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $59.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $63.78.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The data storage provider reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.91 by ($0.36). Western Digital had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 15.68%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Western Digital Co. will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WDC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $95.00 price objective on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Western Digital in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $100.00 to $80.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Western Digital from $83.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities dropped their price target on shares of Western Digital from $115.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Western Digital has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $81.47.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Western Digital in the 4th quarter valued at $352,572,000. AMF Tjanstepension AB acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital during the fourth quarter worth $94,181,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Western Digital by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,459,767 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $2,531,876,000 after buying an additional 1,439,149 shares during the last quarter. Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new stake in Western Digital in the fourth quarter valued at $68,950,000. Finally, Atalan Capital Partners LP purchased a new stake in Western Digital during the 4th quarter worth about $62,612,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

About Western Digital

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.