Slate Path Capital LP Sells 2,045,900 Shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC)

Slate Path Capital LP lessened its stake in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC - Free Report) by 23.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,694,403 shares of the data storage provider's stock after selling 2,045,900 shares during the quarter. Western Digital comprises approximately 7.3% of Slate Path Capital LP's holdings, making the stock its biggest holding. Slate Path Capital LP owned approximately 1.92% of Western Digital worth $399,187,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WDC. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position 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 acquiring an additional 11,013 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its holdings in Western Digital by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 841,700 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $50,191,000 after purchasing an additional 50,188 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Western Digital by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 390,826 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $23,305,000 after purchasing an additional 15,189 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Western Digital by 83.9% during the fourth quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 31,634 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $1,886,000 after purchasing an additional 14,432 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its position in shares of Western Digital by 53.3% in the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 99,444 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $5,930,000 after buying an additional 34,579 shares during the period. 92.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on WDC shares. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Western Digital in a report on Thursday. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. 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 research report on Monday, March 17th. Wells Fargo & Company restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Western Digital from $100.00 to $80.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $89.00 to $80.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $73.68.

Western Digital Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WDC traded up $0.61 during trading on Friday, reaching $40.78. 4,158,545 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,297,505. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.71 and a beta of 1.39. Western Digital Co. has a 12 month low of $28.83 and a 12 month high of $81.55. The company has a 50 day moving average of $42.37 and a 200-day moving average of $57.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.99 and a quick ratio of 1.26.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) 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%. On average, equities analysts expect that Western Digital Co. will post 4.89 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Western Digital

In other Western Digital news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 1,659 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.36, for a total transaction of $68,616.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 43,776 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,810,575.36. The trade was a 3.65 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.30% 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.