Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Price Target Cut to $85.00

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) had its price target reduced by research analysts at Citigroup from $95.00 to $85.00 in a research note issued on Thursday. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the data storage provider’s stock. Citigroup’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 27.90% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on WDC. Susquehanna cut their target price on Western Digital from $88.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Summit Insights downgraded shares of Western Digital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Wedbush upped their price target on Western Digital from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Evercore ISI restated an “outperform” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, BNP Paribas lowered their price target on Western Digital from $95.00 to $90.00 in a report on Thursday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $83.95.

Western Digital Stock Down 0.2 %

NASDAQ:WDC traded down $0.15 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $66.46. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,054,173 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,100,786. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. Western Digital has a 1 year low of $35.62 and a 1 year high of $81.55. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $65.26 and a 200-day moving average of $69.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.97 billion, a PE ratio of -36.52 and a beta of 1.39.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The data storage provider reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $3.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.77 billion. Western Digital had a negative net margin of 3.75% and a negative return on equity of 2.63%. Equities research analysts forecast that Western Digital will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO David Goeckeler sold 75,000 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.32, for a total value of $5,274,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 896,630 shares in the company, valued at $63,051,021.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO David Goeckeler sold 75,000 shares of Western Digital 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 owns 896,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $63,051,021.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Robert Soderbery sold 12,154 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.09, for a total transaction of $693,871.86. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 128,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,331,098.17. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 92,955 shares of company stock worth $6,327,560. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WDC. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Western Digital in the first quarter valued at approximately $273,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC purchased a new position in Western Digital in the 1st quarter valued at $437,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Western Digital during the 1st quarter worth $36,000. Harbour Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the first quarter worth $299,000. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. raised its position in shares of Western Digital by 8.6% in the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 822,281 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $56,112,000 after buying an additional 64,980 shares during the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is 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.