Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Price Target Cut to $40.00 by Analysts at Susquehanna

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) had its price objective reduced by equities research analysts at Susquehanna from $72.00 to $40.00 in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the data storage provider’s stock. Susquehanna’s price target points to a potential upside of 16.28% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Western Digital from $100.00 to $93.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Western Digital from $74.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Western Digital from $89.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Western Digital from $100.00 to $80.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $60.45 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $77.00.

Western Digital Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ WDC opened at $34.40 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.19 and a beta of 1.39. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $48.44 and its 200 day moving average is $59.94. Western Digital has a 52 week low of $28.83 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.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last released 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 net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 15.68%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Western Digital will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Digital

In related news, 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 value of $68,616.24. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 43,776 shares in the company, valued at $1,810,575.36. The trade was a 3.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Western Digital

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mather Group LLC. boosted its position in shares of Western Digital by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 2,416 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $144,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its stake in Western Digital by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 11,804 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $704,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the period. BNP Paribas boosted its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas now owns 26,415 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $1,575,000 after buying an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Western Digital by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 4,324 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $258,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the period. Finally, Beta Wealth Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Western Digital by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Beta Wealth Group Inc. now owns 8,300 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $495,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.