Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Price Target Raised to $85.00

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) had its price target upped by investment analysts at Evercore ISI from $80.00 to $85.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "outperform" rating on the data storage provider's stock. Evercore ISI's price target indicates a potential upside of 19.11% from the company's current price.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on the company. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on Western Digital from $68.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Western Digital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $45.00 to $65.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Raymond James cut Western Digital from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Western Digital from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Western Digital from $72.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $77.25.

Western Digital Price Performance

Western Digital stock traded up $1.92 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $71.36. 13,864,848 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,097,184. Western Digital has a 12 month low of $32.01 and a 12 month high of $76.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The stock's fifty day moving average is $65.08 and its 200-day moving average is $54.96. The stock has a market cap of $23.25 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.01 and a beta of 1.57.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The data storage provider reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.42. Western Digital had a negative net margin of 19.90% and a negative return on equity of 19.45%. The company had revenue of $3.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.37 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($1.57) EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 23.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Western Digital will post -2.21 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Western Digital

In other Western Digital news, Director Kimberly Alexy sold 2,648 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.95, for a total value of $185,227.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 20,509 shares in the company, valued at $1,434,604.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Kimberly Alexy sold 2,648 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.95, for a total value of $185,227.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 20,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,434,604.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 443 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.00, for a total value of $33,225.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 30,958 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,321,850. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Digital

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Western Digital in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Naples Money Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Western Digital in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. purchased a new position in Western Digital in the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its holdings in Western Digital by 121.7% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 614 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 337 shares during the period. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in shares of Western Digital by 79.1% in the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 747 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 330 shares during the period. 92.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.