Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Stock Price Target Cut by Argus

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) had its target price reduced by analysts at Argus from $600.00 to $500.00 in a note issued to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the data storage provider’s stock. Argus‘s target price indicates a potential upside of 45.71% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on WDC. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Western Digital from $540.00 to $430.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Mizuho set a $490.00 price objective on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Friday. Melius Research set a $1,050.00 price target on shares of Western Digital and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Zacks Research cut Western Digital from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $625.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Western Digital presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $591.04.

Western Digital Stock Down 0.2%

NASDAQ:WDC opened at $343.15 on Monday. Western Digital has a twelve month low of $121.85 and a twelve month high of $799.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $128.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 2.11. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $432.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $480.74.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The data storage provider reported $4.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.11 by $0.53. The firm had revenue of $4.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.14 billion. Western Digital had a return on equity of 55.62% and a net margin of 69.20%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 55.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.78 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Western Digital will post 19.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Vidyadhara K. Gubbi sold 1,795 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $459.87, for a total value of $825,466.65. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 80,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,052,185.77. The trade was a 2.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Irving Tan sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $444.97, for a total value of $8,899,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 575,966 shares in the company, valued at $256,287,591.02. The trade was a 3.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 25,436 shares of company stock valued at $11,340,064. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Western Digital

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Western Digital by 28.6% in the second quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 90 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Western Digital by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 2,302 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $1,470,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Everpar Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Western Digital by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Everpar Advisors LLC now owns 1,442 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $921,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Ares Financial Consulting LLC grew its stake in shares of Western Digital by 45.5% in the 2nd quarter. Ares Financial Consulting LLC now owns 80 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC grew its stake in shares of Western Digital by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 1,390 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $888,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

Western Digital News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Western Digital this week:

• Positive Sentiment: CEO Irving Tan said AI-related storage demand could grow about 25% annually, and Western Digital expects expanding margins despite concerns about data-center costs. The comments support the company’s long-term growth outlook. AI Trade in Trouble? Western Digital CEO Explains Why He’s Not Worried
• Positive Sentiment: Recent quarterly results were strong, with revenue up more than 50% year over year, earnings exceeding estimates and higher guidance accompanied by a dividend increase. Demand for hard-disk drives and rising margins provide fundamental support. Why Western Digital’s AI Storage Boom Defies the Chip Sell-Off
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan forecasts substantial price appreciation for Western Digital, indicating that at least one major bank views the selloff as an opportunity. JPMorgan Chase & Co. Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Western Digital Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Western Digital’s consumer 5TB My Passport external drive is being heavily discounted by Amazon. The promotion may support product visibility and unit demand but is unlikely to materially affect companywide results. Amazon Goes Big on Portable External Hard Drive Deal With WD 5TB My Passport at Near-Used Prices
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts and market commentators warn that AI-related debt, data-center spending and uncertain returns on investment could delay further upside, even after the strong earnings report. Lasting AI Memory & Neocloud Headwinds Despite Strong WDC Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Seeking Alpha downgraded Western Digital, citing worsening risks to the AI supercycle. Cantor Fitzgerald, Rosenblatt Securities and TD Cowen also issued pessimistic forecasts, adding selling pressure. Western Digital: Cracks In Its AI Supercycle Are Worsening
• Negative Sentiment: An insider sold approximately $306,660 of WDC stock. While modest relative to the company’s size, the transaction reinforces near-term investor caution. Western Digital Insider Sells Stock

Western Digital Company Profile

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: WDC) is a data storage technology company that develops and manufactures hard disk drives (HDDs) and related storage solutions. Its products are used in data centers, cloud infrastructure, enterprise systems, personal computers, gaming platforms and external storage devices.

The company offers HDD-based products for business and consumer applications, including high-capacity drives designed for hyperscale and cloud data centers, enterprise storage environments, network-attached storage systems and personal computing.