Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) SVP Sells $68,616.24 in Stock

Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 1,659 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.36, for a total transaction of $68,616.24. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 43,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,810,575.36. This trade represents a 3.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Western Digital Stock Performance

WDC traded down $1.16 during trading on Monday, reaching $40.54. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 10,562,520 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,386,635. Western Digital Co. has a 52-week low of $39.42 and a 52-week high of $61.16. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $61.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $64.37. The company has a market capitalization of $14.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.65 and a beta of 1.42. 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) last issued its earnings results 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 return on equity of 15.68% and a net margin of 9.95%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Western Digital Co. will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Western Digital by 278.9% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 413 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 304 shares during the period. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in Western Digital during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC grew its position in Western Digital by 2,184.2% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 434 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 415 shares during the period. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA purchased a new position in Western Digital during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in Western Digital during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on WDC. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Western Digital from $100.00 to $93.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Western Digital from $89.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $95.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Western Digital from $60.45 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Western Digital from $85.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.47.

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.