Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) Shares Purchased by Central Asset Investments & Management Holdings HK Ltd

Central Asset Investments & Management Holdings HK Ltd raised its stake in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) by 238.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 317,455 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after buying an additional 223,623 shares during the quarter. Western Digital makes up approximately 9.0% of Central Asset Investments & Management Holdings HK Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Central Asset Investments & Management Holdings HK Ltd owned about 0.10% of Western Digital worth $24,054,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WDC. Kodai Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Western Digital in the 4th quarter valued at $212,900,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Western Digital during the 4th quarter worth $150,958,000. AGF Management Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 28,925.8% during the 2nd quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 2,202,190 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $166,860,000 after purchasing an additional 2,194,603 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 1,089.7% during the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,071,600 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $73,126,000 after purchasing an additional 981,527 shares during the period. Finally, Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new position in shares of Western Digital during the 4th quarter worth $48,466,000. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen lowered their price target on Western Digital from $95.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 13th. Mizuho increased their price target on Western Digital from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. Summit Insights cut Western Digital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. StockNews.com upgraded Western Digital from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, July 6th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $80.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Western Digital currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $83.05.

Insider Transactions at Western Digital

In other news, EVP Robert Soderbery sold 12,154 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.09, for a total transaction of $693,871.86. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 128,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,331,098.17. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Western Digital news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 417 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.89, for a total transaction of $27,059.13. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 28,870 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,873,374.30. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Robert Soderbery sold 12,154 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.09, for a total value of $693,871.86. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 128,413 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,331,098.17. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 17,955 shares of company stock valued at $1,053,560. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Western Digital Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WDC opened at $65.89 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.78. Western Digital Co. has a fifty-two week low of $35.62 and a fifty-two week high of $81.55. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $65.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $69.48.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The data storage provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.17. Western Digital had a negative return on equity of 2.63% and a negative net margin of 3.75%. The business had revenue of $3.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.77 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that Western Digital Co. will post 7.75 EPS for the current year.

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.