Cerity Partners LLC Boosts Stock Position in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC)

Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) by 111.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 151,561 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after buying an additional 79,951 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Western Digital were worth $10,350,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WDC. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD purchased a new position in shares of Western Digital in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Eastern Bank purchased a new position in Western Digital in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Western Digital in the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Western Digital in the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

Western Digital Stock Up 5.2 %

Shares of Western Digital stock opened at $73.02 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $66.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $69.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.24 billion, a PE ratio of 42.95 and a beta of 1.40. Western Digital Co. has a 52-week low of $46.28 and a 52-week high of $81.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.47.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The data storage provider reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.55 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $4.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.12 billion. Western Digital had a return on equity of 8.57% and a net margin of 4.81%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 48.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($1.97) EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Western Digital Co. will post 6.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WDC has been the topic of several analyst reports. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Western Digital from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $79.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays raised their target price on Western Digital from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Summit Insights downgraded Western Digital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $94.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $87.71.

Insider Activity at Western Digital

In other news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 2,169 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.96, for a total transaction of $134,391.24. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 32,601 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,019,957.96. The trade was a 6.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO David Goeckeler sold 75,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.32, for a total value of $5,274,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 896,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $63,051,021.60. This trade represents a 7.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 186,278 shares of company stock valued at $13,173,985 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.30% 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.