Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 5,912,668 shares of the data storage provider's stock, valued at approximately $352,572,000. Norges Bank owned about 1.70% of Western Digital at the end of the most recent quarter.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WDC. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Western Digital by 278.9% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 413 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in Western Digital during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in Western Digital by 2,184.2% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 434 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new stake in shares of Western Digital in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Western Digital in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Institutional investors own 92.51% of the company's stock.
Western Digital Stock Up 1.1 %
Shares of WDC traded up $0.46 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $40.89. The company had a trading volume of 5,291,325 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,110,644. Western Digital Co. has a 52 week low of $39.10 and a 52 week high of $81.55. The company has a market capitalization of $14.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.74 and a beta of 1.42. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $55.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $62.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.99.
Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The data storage provider reported $1.55 earnings per share 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%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Western Digital Co. will post 4.89 EPS for the current year.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Western Digital from $100.00 to $80.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Western Digital from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Western Digital from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Western Digital from $83.00 to $72.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Western Digital from $100.00 to $93.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Western Digital has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $80.21.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on WDC
Insiders Place Their Bets
In related news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 1,659 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.36, for a total transaction of $68,616.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 43,776 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,810,575.36. This represents a 3.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Western Digital Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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