Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) Shares Sold by M&G Plc

M&G Plc lessened its stake in shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) by 8.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 166,768 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after selling 14,687 shares during the quarter. M&G Plc owned 0.05% of Western Digital worth $12,674,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WDC. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Western Digital by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,579,938 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $2,020,431,000 after acquiring an additional 215,207 shares in the last quarter. DNB Asset Management AS lifted its stake in shares of Western Digital by 2.7% in the second quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 7,857,586 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $595,369,000 after acquiring an additional 206,756 shares in the last quarter. Kodai Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital in the fourth quarter worth about $212,900,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Western Digital by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,096,993 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $162,190,000 after acquiring an additional 68,879 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital in the fourth quarter worth about $150,958,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

Western Digital Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WDC opened at $61.58 on Wednesday. Western Digital Co. has a one year low of $35.62 and a one year high of $81.55. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $72.35 and a 200-day moving average of $68.35. The company has a market capitalization of $20.11 billion, a PE ratio of -12.39 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.41.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Robert Soderbery sold 12,154 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.09, for a total value of $693,871.86. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 128,413 shares in the company, valued at $7,331,098.17. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Robert Soderbery sold 12,154 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.09, for a total value of $693,871.86. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 128,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,331,098.17. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 416 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.88, for a total transaction of $29,902.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,321 shares in the company, valued at $2,179,473.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 39,642 shares of company stock worth $2,714,014 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on WDC shares. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Western Digital from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Western Digital from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. StockNews.com raised Western Digital from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, July 6th. Wedbush upped their target price on Western Digital from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Benchmark upped their target price on Western Digital from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $84.41.

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.