Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Shares Up 10.3% – Time to Buy?

Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) traded up 10.3% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $33.99 and last traded at $34.36. 1,073,680 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 6,182,113 shares. The stock had previously closed at $31.16.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on WDC shares. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Western Digital from $89.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped 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 note on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Western Digital from $74.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $95.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Western Digital from $100.00 to $80.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Western Digital presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $78.68.

Western Digital Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $49.03 and a 200 day simple moving average of $60.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.30 and a beta of 1.39.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The data storage provider reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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, analysts expect that Western Digital Co. will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 1,659 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 43,776 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,810,575.36. This trade represents a 3.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Western Digital

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of Western Digital by 278.9% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 413 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares during the period. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in Western Digital during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA purchased a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Western Digital in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Elequin Capital LP purchased a new stake in Western Digital during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.