Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) Shares Sold by Prudential PLC

Prudential PLC trimmed its holdings in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC - Free Report) by 78.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,571 shares of the data storage provider's stock after selling 13,282 shares during the quarter. Prudential PLC's holdings in Western Digital were worth $213,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WDC. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its position in shares of Western Digital by 21.8% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 11,177 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $763,000 after purchasing an additional 1,998 shares in the last quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $246,000. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in Western Digital by 22.6% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 932 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its stake in Western Digital by 68.7% during the third quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 20,570 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $1,405,000 after acquiring an additional 8,378 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Western Digital by 20.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 48,501 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $3,312,000 after purchasing an additional 8,217 shares during the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WDC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Benchmark raised shares of Western Digital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $55.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Bank of America decreased their price target on Western Digital from $89.00 to $80.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Western Digital from $60.45 to $64.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on Western Digital in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $77.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 1,659 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.36, for a total value of $68,616.24. Following the completion of the sale, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Western Digital Trading Up 4.6 %

WDC stock traded up $1.59 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $35.99. The stock had a trading volume of 1,292,515 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,309,919. Western Digital Co. has a 12-month low of $28.83 and a 12-month high of $81.55. The firm has a market cap of $12.52 billion, a PE ratio of 8.57 and a beta of 1.39. The company's 50-day moving average price is $48.44 and its 200 day moving average price is $59.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.99 and a quick ratio of 1.26.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 return on equity of 15.68% and a net margin of 9.95%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Western Digital Co. will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.