Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Reaches New 52-Week Low – What’s Next?

Shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $28.83 and last traded at $28.87, with a volume of 656247 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $30.54.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on WDC shares. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $95.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a report on Monday, February 10th. Rosenblatt Securities decreased their price objective on Western Digital from $115.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price on Western Digital from $95.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 7th. Mizuho reduced their price target on Western Digital from $90.00 to $82.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective 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. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $80.21.

Western Digital Trading Down 0.5 %

The company has a 50 day moving average of $52.70 and a 200 day moving average of $61.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.28 and a beta of 1.39.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Western Digital news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 1,659 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.36, for a total value of $68,616.24. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 43,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,810,575.36. This trade represents a 3.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Digital

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Mather Group LLC. boosted its holdings in Western Digital by 7.0% in 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 during the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its position in shares of Western Digital by 1.4% during the 4th 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 lifted its holdings in Western Digital by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas now owns 26,415 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $1,575,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its position in Western Digital by 22.6% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 932 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the period. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC increased its stake in Western Digital by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 4,324 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $258,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

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.