Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Price Target Raised to $83.00

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) had its price target upped by Morgan Stanley from $73.00 to $83.00 in a research report report published on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the data storage provider’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price target on shares of Western Digital from $70.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Western Digital from $66.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Western Digital from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Western Digital in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. They issued an outperform rating and a $80.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Western Digital currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $73.17.

Western Digital Trading Down 2.6 %

Shares of WDC stock opened at $68.32 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $63.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $53.99. Western Digital has a 52-week low of $31.97 and a 52-week high of $76.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.26 billion, a PE ratio of -9.58 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.67.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last released its earnings results on Monday, January 29th. The data storage provider reported ($0.69) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.30) by $0.61. Western Digital had a negative return on equity of 19.45% and a negative net margin of 19.90%. The firm had revenue of $3.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.69) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Western Digital will post -2.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Western Digital

In other Western Digital news, Director Kimberly Alexy sold 2,648 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.95, for a total transaction of $185,227.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 20,509 shares in the company, valued at $1,434,604.55. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 443 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.00, for a total value of $33,225.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,958 shares in the company, valued at $2,321,850. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Kimberly Alexy sold 2,648 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.95, for a total transaction of $185,227.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 20,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,434,604.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Western Digital

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Western Digital during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. bought a new position in shares of Western Digital during the 1st quarter worth $31,000. Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Western Digital during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Western Digital in the first quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its stake in Western Digital by 121.7% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 614 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 337 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

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.