FIL Ltd Grows Stock Position in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC)

FIL Ltd boosted its holdings in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) by 2.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,202,627 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 50,756 shares during the period. FIL Ltd’s holdings in Western Digital were worth $131,343,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WDC. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 21.8% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 11,177 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $763,000 after purchasing an additional 1,998 shares during the period. IHT Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Western Digital during the third quarter worth about $246,000. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Western Digital by 22.6% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 932 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its stake in shares of Western Digital by 68.7% in the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 20,570 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $1,405,000 after acquiring an additional 8,378 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 20.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 48,501 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $3,312,000 after acquiring an additional 8,217 shares during the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 1,659 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was 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 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on WDC shares. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price on shares of Western Digital from $95.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 7th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Western Digital from $85.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Citigroup raised their target price on Western Digital from $60.45 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $100.00 to $93.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Western Digital from $74.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 17th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Western Digital presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.21.

Western Digital Trading Up 1.3 %

WDC opened at $31.55 on Wednesday. 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 $28.83 and a 52 week high of $81.55. The business’s 50 day moving average is $50.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $60.76. The firm has a market cap of $10.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.51 and a beta of 1.39.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last announced 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 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.