Weiss Asset Management LP Buys New Holdings in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC)

Weiss Asset Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 131,014 shares of the data storage provider's stock, valued at approximately $8,947,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Aigen Investment Management LP grew its stake in Western Digital by 124.2% during the third quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 21,412 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $1,462,000 after buying an additional 11,860 shares during the period. Avala Global LP raised its position in Western Digital by 49.0% in the third quarter. Avala Global LP now owns 1,147,700 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $78,376,000 after purchasing an additional 377,500 shares during the period. Swedbank AB lifted its stake in shares of Western Digital by 19.7% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 291,777 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $19,925,000 after purchasing an additional 47,965 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of Western Digital by 11.2% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 277,010 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $18,917,000 after buying an additional 27,849 shares during the period. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its stake in shares of Western Digital by 137.9% in the third quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 43,575 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $2,976,000 after buying an additional 25,262 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.51% of the company's stock.

Western Digital Price Performance

Shares of WDC stock traded down $1.04 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $71.07. 3,672,213 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,030,729. The company's 50 day moving average price is $67.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $69.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.47. The company has a market cap of $24.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.54 and a beta of 1.42. Western Digital Co. has a 12 month low of $46.75 and a 12 month high of $81.55.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The data storage provider reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.55 by $0.23. Western Digital had a return on equity of 8.57% and a net margin of 4.81%. The company had revenue of $4.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($1.97) EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 48.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Western Digital Co. will post 6.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Western Digital

In other news, CEO David Goeckeler sold 75,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 896,630 shares in the company, valued at $63,051,021.60. This represents a 7.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 1,993 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.94, for a total transaction of $139,390.42. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,608 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,140,723.52. This trade represents a 6.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 184,107 shares of company stock valued at $13,042,381 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on WDC shares. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $92.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Evercore ISI reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Western Digital from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $95.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Western Digital currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $87.71.

Western Digital 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.