BLB&B Advisors LLC Cuts Holdings in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC)

BLB&B Advisors LLC lessened its position in shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) by 3.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,565 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after selling 460 shares during the period. BLB&B Advisors LLC’s holdings in Western Digital were worth $690,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WDC. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 83,533 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $4,981,000 after purchasing an additional 2,710 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its stake in Western Digital by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 841,700 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $50,191,000 after buying an additional 50,188 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Western Digital in the fourth quarter worth $732,000. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated purchased a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 4th quarter valued at $217,000. Finally, Choreo LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 31.8% during the 4th quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 6,692 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $399,000 after acquiring an additional 1,613 shares in the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 658 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.99, for a total transaction of $46,053.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 28,863 shares in the company, valued at $2,020,121.37. The trade was a 2.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In the last three months, insiders sold 1,347 shares of company stock valued at $93,027. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WDC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Barclays lowered their price target on Western Digital from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Western Digital from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $95.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $89.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Western Digital from $100.00 to $93.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Western Digital presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $84.21.

Western Digital Trading Down 0.0 %

NASDAQ:WDC opened at $64.46 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $22.42 billion, a PE ratio of 15.35 and a beta of 1.44. The business’s 50 day moving average is $64.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $65.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Western Digital Co. has a 52 week low of $52.77 and a 52 week high of $81.55.

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

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.