Romano Brothers AND Company Decreases Stock Holdings in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC)

Romano Brothers AND Company lowered its position in shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) by 32.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,764 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after selling 10,250 shares during the period. Romano Brothers AND Company’s holdings in Western Digital were worth $1,485,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WDC. Natixis Advisors L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 0.9% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 37,156 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $1,695,000 after acquiring an additional 338 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its stake in shares of Western Digital by 15.2% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 29,869 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $1,363,000 after purchasing an additional 3,937 shares in the last quarter. Teza Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Western Digital by 113.7% during the third quarter. Teza Capital Management LLC now owns 39,680 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $1,811,000 after buying an additional 21,108 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Western Digital by 41.8% in the third quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 56,149 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $2,562,000 after buying an additional 16,553 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its holdings in Western Digital by 58.7% in the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 128,043 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $5,843,000 after buying an additional 47,343 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

Western Digital Price Performance

Shares of WDC stock opened at $75.77 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $74.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $64.39. Western Digital Co. has a 52 week low of $35.62 and a 52 week high of $81.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The data storage provider reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.42. Western Digital had a negative net margin of 12.87% and a negative return on equity of 13.75%. The firm had revenue of $3.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.37 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($1.57) earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Western Digital Co. will post -1.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on WDC shares. Benchmark raised Western Digital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Raymond James lowered Western Digital from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Western Digital from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Western Digital from $65.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Western Digital from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $82.09.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Digital

In other Western Digital news, Director Kimberly Alexy sold 2,648 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.95, for a total transaction of $185,227.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 20,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,434,604.55. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Western Digital news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 443 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.00, for a total transaction of $33,225.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 30,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,321,850. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Kimberly Alexy sold 2,648 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.95, for a total transaction of $185,227.60. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 20,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,434,604.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 30,579 shares of company stock valued at $2,238,595. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Western Digital 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.