State of Alaska Department of Revenue Lowers Holdings in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC)

State of Alaska Department of Revenue reduced its holdings in shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) by 22.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 39,437 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after selling 11,649 shares during the quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue’s holdings in Western Digital were worth $2,351,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Western Digital by 32.3% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 45,131 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $2,691,000 after buying an additional 11,013 shares during the period. Aigen Investment Management LP grew its stake in Western Digital by 124.2% during the third quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 21,412 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $1,462,000 after acquiring an additional 11,860 shares in the last quarter. Avala Global LP grew its position in shares of Western Digital by 49.0% during the third quarter. Avala Global LP now owns 1,147,700 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $78,376,000 after purchasing an additional 377,500 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB raised its position in shares of Western Digital by 19.7% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 291,777 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $19,925,000 after buying an additional 47,965 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its position in Western Digital by 11.2% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 277,010 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $18,917,000 after acquiring an additional 27,849 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 658 shares of the 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 28,863 shares in the company, valued at $2,020,121.37. This trade represents a 2.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold 1,347 shares of company stock worth $93,027 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Western Digital Stock Performance

NASDAQ WDC opened at $69.04 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $64.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $65.16. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $24.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.44 and a beta of 1.44. Western Digital Co. has a fifty-two week low of $52.77 and a fifty-two week high of $81.55.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last posted its earnings results 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 net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 15.68%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Western Digital Co. will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $95.00 price objective on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Monday. BNP Paribas dropped their price objective on Western Digital from $95.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on Western Digital from $83.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Benchmark lowered Western Digital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $70.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Western Digital from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Western Digital has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $84.21.

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.