Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Given New $85.00 Price Target at Benchmark

Key Points

Error: Response status code does not indicate success: 429 (Too Many Requests).

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) had its price objective hoisted by investment analysts at Benchmark from $58.00 to $85.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "buy" rating on the data storage provider's stock. Benchmark's target price would suggest a potential upside of 12.06% from the company's previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on WDC. TD Securities cut their price target on shares of Western Digital from $80.00 to $53.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. BNP Paribas reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Summit Insights raised shares of Western Digital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $95.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Thursday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Western Digital in a report on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $70.00 price objective on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $74.47.

Western Digital Stock Performance

Western Digital stock traded up $4.42 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $75.85. The company had a trading volume of 5,877,677 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,947,543. The company has a quick ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. Western Digital has a 52 week low of $28.83 and a 52 week high of $76.91. The company has a 50 day moving average of $61.11 and a 200-day moving average of $53.69. The firm has a market cap of $26.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.43 and a beta of 1.54.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The data storage provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.45 billion. Western Digital had a net margin of 13.33% and a return on equity of 20.58%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 30.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.44 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Western Digital will post 4.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Digital declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, May 13th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the data storage provider to repurchase up to 11.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Western Digital

In related news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 1,729 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.88, for a total value of $94,887.52. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 40,089 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,200,084.32. This represents a 4.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Irving Tan sold 11,379 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.19, for a total transaction of $548,354.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 605,481 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,178,129.39. This trade represents a 1.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 13,353 shares of company stock worth $657,454. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Western Digital

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WDC. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Western Digital by 130.0% during the first quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 5,029,359 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $203,337,000 after purchasing an additional 2,842,822 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its stake in Western Digital by 107.1% in the first quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,369,331 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $136,222,000 after acquiring an additional 1,742,481 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new stake in Western Digital in the first quarter worth $50,897,000. Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new stake in Western Digital in the fourth quarter worth $68,950,000. Finally, Atalan Capital Partners LP purchased a new stake in Western Digital in the fourth quarter worth $62,612,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.