Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Morgan Stanley Analyst Says

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) had its target price boosted by stock analysts at Morgan Stanley from $78.00 to $85.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "overweight" rating on the data storage provider's stock. Morgan Stanley's target price indicates a potential upside of 27.00% from the company's previous close.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Loop Capital restated a "buy" rating on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Bank of America raised their target price on Western Digital from $62.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Mizuho lowered their price target on Western Digital from $82.00 to $68.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Barclays set a $50.00 price objective on Western Digital and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, TD Cowen lowered their target price 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. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $64.47.

Western Digital Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WDC traded up $0.79 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $66.93. 5,100,170 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,077,798. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. Western Digital has a twelve month low of $28.83 and a twelve month high of $67.35. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $55.66 and a 200 day moving average of $53.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.68 and a beta of 1.54.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The data storage provider reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.30. Western Digital had a net margin of 13.33% and a return on equity of 20.58%. The business had revenue of ($1,465.00) million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.63 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 33.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Western Digital will post 4.89 EPS for the current year.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Irving Tan sold 11,379 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 605,481 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,178,129.39. The trade was a 1.84% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 1,729 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.88, for a total transaction of $94,887.52. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 40,089 shares in the company, valued at $2,200,084.32. This represents a 4.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 13,353 shares of company stock worth $657,454. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Elequin Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Western Digital during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new stake in Western Digital during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in Western Digital by 34.1% in the first quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 955 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital in the first quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 91.6% in the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 1,044 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 499 shares during the period. 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.