Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Stock Price Expected to Rise, UBS Group Analyst Says

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Free Report) had its price objective raised by UBS Group from $70.00 to $74.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the data storage provider's stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. BNP Paribas decreased their target price on Western Digital from $95.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $95.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Western Digital from $82.00 to $80.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Western Digital from $89.00 to $80.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Western Digital has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $84.42.

Western Digital Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WDC traded up $0.83 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $68.39. 5,673,098 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,516,352. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $64.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $65.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.28 and a beta of 1.44. Western Digital has a fifty-two week low of $52.77 and a fifty-two week high of $81.55. 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 announced 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%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Western Digital will post 4.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Western Digital

In related news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 658 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.99, for a total value of $46,053.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 28,863 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,020,121.37. This represents a 2.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,347 shares of company stock worth $93,027. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Digital

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Western Digital by 278.9% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 413 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank bought a new position in Western Digital during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position 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 acquiring an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA bought a new stake in Western Digital in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by 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.