Morgan Stanley Raises Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Price Target to $70.00

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) had its price target hoisted by Morgan Stanley from $54.00 to $70.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the data storage provider's stock. Morgan Stanley's price target indicates a potential upside of 39.50% from the stock's current price.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on WDC. Loop Capital reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Rosenblatt Securities decreased their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $76.00 to $50.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $95.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 7th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $80.00 to $58.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, BNP Paribas reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Western Digital in a report on Friday, May 16th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $64.95.

Western Digital Stock Performance

NASDAQ WDC traded up $0.34 during trading on Friday, reaching $50.18. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,762,727 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,418,071. The firm has a market cap of $17.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.95 and a beta of 1.42. The business's fifty day moving average price is $41.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $54.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.99. Western Digital has a twelve month low of $28.83 and a twelve month high of $81.55.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The data storage provider reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.30. Western Digital had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 15.68%. The business had revenue of ($1,465.00) million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.63 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 33.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Western Digital will post 4.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Digital declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, May 13th that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the data storage provider to reacquire up to 11.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Western Digital

In other Western Digital news, CEO Irving Tan sold 11,379 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.19, for a total transaction of $548,354.01. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 605,481 shares of the company's stock, valued at $29,178,129.39. This trade represents a 1.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 1,659 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 43,776 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,810,575.36. This represents a 3.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 13,494 shares of company stock valued at $636,747. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Digital

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in WDC. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Western Digital in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new stake in Western Digital during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA acquired a new stake in Western Digital during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Western Digital during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in Western Digital by 34.1% during the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 955 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.