Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Purchases 2,723 Shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its position in shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) by 5.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 57,364 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,723 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Western Digital were worth $3,004,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Naples Money Management LLC bought a new position in Western Digital during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. 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. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its holdings 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 worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 330 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in shares of Western Digital in the third quarter worth $41,000. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC bought a new position in shares of Western Digital in the fourth quarter worth $41,000. 92.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Western Digital Trading Up 4.3 %

NASDAQ WDC opened at $69.92 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $64.19 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $54.57. Western Digital Co. has a twelve month low of $31.97 and a twelve 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 company has a market capitalization of $22.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.81 and a beta of 1.57.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 29th. The data storage provider reported ($0.69) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.30) by $0.61. Western Digital had a negative return on equity of 19.45% and a negative net margin of 19.90%. The business had revenue of $3.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.69) earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Western Digital Co. will post -2.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on WDC shares. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on Western Digital from $70.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Rosenblatt Securities raised Western Digital from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. UBS Group raised their price target on Western Digital from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Bank of America raised their price target on Western Digital from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Western Digital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $45.00 to $65.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $73.72.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Digital

In other news, Director Kimberly Alexy sold 2,648 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.95, for a total value of $185,227.60. Following the transaction, the director now owns 20,509 shares in the company, valued at $1,434,604.55. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 443 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.00, for a total value of $33,225.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 30,958 shares in the company, valued at $2,321,850. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Kimberly Alexy sold 2,648 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 20,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,434,604.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Western Digital 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.