Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) Stake Decreased by BLB&B Advisors LLC

BLB&B Advisors LLC cut its holdings in shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 11,565 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after selling 460 shares during the period. BLB&B Advisors LLC’s holdings in Western Digital were worth $690,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp boosted its position in Western Digital by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,572,686 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $926,879,000 after acquiring an additional 423,651 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Western Digital by 1.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,921,608 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $539,355,000 after purchasing an additional 76,781 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in Western Digital by 24.6% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,711,428 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $253,453,000 after purchasing an additional 732,344 shares during the period. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. grew its position in Western Digital by 13.2% in the 3rd quarter. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. now owns 3,287,400 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $224,497,000 after buying an additional 383,390 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP increased its stake in Western Digital by 25.7% during the 3rd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 3,192,762 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $218,034,000 after buying an additional 651,847 shares during the period. 92.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Western Digital Trading Down 0.0 %

Western Digital stock opened at $64.46 on Friday. Western Digital Co. has a 52 week low of $52.77 and a 52 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. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.35 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $64.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $65.24.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The data storage provider reported $1.55 EPS 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%. Research analysts forecast that Western Digital Co. will post 4.89 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Western Digital news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 658 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 28,863 shares in the company, valued at $2,020,121.37. This represents a 2.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 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 company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on WDC shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $95.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Rosenblatt Securities decreased their price target on Western Digital from $115.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $95.00 price objective on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Mizuho cut their price objective on Western Digital from $90.00 to $82.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Western Digital from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $84.21.

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.