Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $83.05.

Several equities analysts have commented on WDC shares. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $95.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Western Digital from $100.00 to $93.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Western Digital from $85.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Western Digital from $100.00 to $80.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Western Digital from $60.45 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday.

Western Digital Price Performance

Western Digital stock opened at $48.20 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company has a market capitalization of $16.77 billion, a PE ratio of 11.48 and a beta of 1.44. Western Digital has a 12 month low of $39.58 and a 12 month high of $61.16. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $63.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $65.29.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The data storage provider reported $1.55 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%. Analysts expect that Western Digital will post 4.89 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Eastern Bank bought a new position in Western Digital in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in Western Digital by 278.9% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 413 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in Western Digital by 2,184.2% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 434 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in Western Digital in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA bought a new position in Western Digital in the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

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.