Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Price Target Lowered to $72.00 at The Goldman Sachs Group

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) had its price target trimmed by The Goldman Sachs Group from $79.00 to $72.00 in a research note published on Thursday. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the data storage provider’s stock.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Summit Insights cut Western Digital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. StockNews.com raised Western Digital from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, July 6th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Western Digital from $74.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Evercore ISI reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $85.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $88.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Western Digital presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $83.95.

Western Digital Trading Down 0.4 %

NASDAQ WDC opened at $66.32 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -36.44 and a beta of 1.39. Western Digital has a 52 week low of $35.62 and a 52 week high of $81.55. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $65.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $69.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 1.32.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The data storage provider reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $3.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.77 billion. Western Digital had a negative net margin of 3.75% and a negative return on equity of 2.63%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Western Digital will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Robert Soderbery sold 12,154 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.09, for a total transaction of $693,871.86. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 128,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,331,098.17. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Robert Soderbery sold 12,154 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.09, for a total transaction of $693,871.86. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 128,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,331,098.17. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 2,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.48, for a total value of $178,292.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 37,448 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,302,303.04. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 92,955 shares of company stock valued at $6,327,560. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Digital

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in Western Digital by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 15,962 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $1,209,000 after buying an additional 203 shares during the period. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its position in shares of Western Digital by 15.6% during the 2nd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,527 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $116,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. increased its stake in Western Digital by 10.7% in the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 2,203 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $167,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. increased its stake in Western Digital by 2.3% in the second quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 10,344 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $784,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Western Digital by 51.2% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 818 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

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.