Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Price Target Cut to $68.00 by Analysts at Mizuho

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) had its price target dropped by analysts at Mizuho from $82.00 to $68.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the data storage provider’s stock. Mizuho’s target price indicates a potential upside of 97.67% from the stock’s previous close.

WDC has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $95.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Western Digital from $74.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Western Digital from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Susquehanna cut their target price on Western Digital from $83.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $95.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a report on Monday, February 10th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Western Digital currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $77.00.

Western Digital Stock Performance

NASDAQ WDC opened at $34.40 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $48.44 and its 200 day moving average price is $59.94. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market cap of $11.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.19 and a beta of 1.39. Western Digital has a 52-week low of $28.83 and a 52-week high of $81.55.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last announced 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 net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 15.68%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Western Digital will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 1,659 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.36, for a total transaction of $68,616.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 43,776 shares in the company, valued at $1,810,575.36. The trade was a 3.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Digital

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Western Digital by 32.3% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 45,131 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $2,691,000 after acquiring an additional 11,013 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its stake in Western Digital by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 841,700 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $50,191,000 after purchasing an additional 50,188 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Western Digital by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 390,826 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $23,305,000 after purchasing an additional 15,189 shares in the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Western Digital by 83.9% during the 4th quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 31,634 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $1,886,000 after purchasing an additional 14,432 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 53.3% during the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 99,444 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $5,930,000 after buying an additional 34,579 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.