Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) Shares Bought by Quest Partners LLC

Quest Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) by 253.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,610 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,610 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC’s holdings in Western Digital were worth $725,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in Western Digital during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD purchased a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the second quarter valued at $29,000. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Western Digital in the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Western Digital during the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

Western Digital Stock Up 3.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ WDC opened at $65.80 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $22.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.71 and a beta of 1.40. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $66.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $69.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Western Digital Co. has a 52-week low of $46.05 and a 52-week high of $81.55.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The data storage provider reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.55 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $4.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.12 billion. Western Digital had a return on equity of 8.57% and a net margin of 4.81%. Western Digital’s quarterly revenue was up 48.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($1.97) EPS. Equities analysts predict that Western Digital Co. will post 6.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Summit Insights cut Western Digital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Western Digital from $95.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Western Digital from $74.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $87.71.

Insider Activity at Western Digital

In other news, EVP Robert Soderbery sold 30,767 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.01, for a total value of $2,092,463.67. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 135,398 shares in the company, valued at $9,208,417.98. This represents a 18.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 2,169 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.96, for a total value of $134,391.24. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 32,601 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,019,957.96. This represents a 6.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 188,144 shares of company stock valued at $13,281,983. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.