Seagate Technology PLC (STX) Upgraded to “Hold” by Zacks Investment Research

Seagate Technology PLC (NASDAQ:STX) was upgraded by Zacks Investment Research from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday, July 25th.

According to Zacks, “Seagate's mixed third-quarter fiscal 2017 results reflected the company's focus on improving profitability by not getting involved into lower-margin businesses. Moreover, we believe that new product launches will help it to win enterprise customers on a continuous basis. Estimates have been stable lately ahead of the company's Q4 earnings release. The company has positive record of earnings surprises in the recent quarters. Further, improving PC shipment – per latest data from Gartner and IDC – bodes well for Seagate. In this regard, strong demand for hybrid drives also augurs well for the company. However, intensifying competition is a major headwind. We note that the company has underperformed the broader Zacks Computer Storage Devices industry on a year-to-date basis.”

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Aegis assumed coverage on Seagate Technology PLC in a research note on Tuesday, June 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 price objective for the company. Longbow Research upgraded Seagate Technology PLC from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $18.42 to $55.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 11th. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of Seagate Technology PLC in a report on Thursday, April 6th. Jefferies Group LLC dropped their target price on Seagate Technology PLC from $55.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 28th. Finally, Loop Capital assumed coverage on Seagate Technology PLC in a report on Monday, July 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. The company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $42.12.

Shares of Seagate Technology PLC (NASDAQ:STX) traded down 0.44% during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $31.37. 2,901,029 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged. The stock has a market cap of $9.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.16 and a beta of 1.69. Seagate Technology PLC has a one year low of $31.04 and a one year high of $50.96. The company’s 50-day moving average is $35.51 and its 200-day moving average is $42.62.

Seagate Technology PLC (NASDAQ:STX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 25th. The data storage provider reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, missing the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.34. Seagate Technology PLC had a net margin of 7.17% and a return on equity of 81.87%. The firm had revenue of $2.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.56 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.69 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Seagate Technology PLC will post $3.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

In other Seagate Technology PLC news, CFO David H. Morton, Jr. sold 3,040 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.26, for a total transaction of $131,510.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 9,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $392,065.38. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Philip G. Brace purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 1st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $33.34 per share, with a total value of $33,340.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 62,855 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,095,585.70. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Winslow Evans & Crocker Inc. increased its stake in shares of Seagate Technology PLC by 12.4% in the first quarter. Winslow Evans & Crocker Inc. now owns 2,726 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $125,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. WFG Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Seagate Technology PLC by 16,536.4% in the second quarter. WFG Advisors LP now owns 3,660 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $142,000 after buying an additional 3,638 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Seagate Technology PLC during the second quarter valued at $150,000. First Quadrant L P CA bought a new stake in shares of Seagate Technology PLC during the second quarter valued at $153,000. Finally, Global X Management Co. LLC increased its stake in shares of Seagate Technology PLC by 29.2% in the first quarter. Global X Management Co. LLC now owns 3,490 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $160,000 after buying an additional 789 shares during the last quarter. 87.27% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Seagate Technology PLC Company Profile

Seagate Technology public limited company is a provider of electronic data storage technology and solutions. The Company’s principal products are hard disk drives (HDDs). In addition to HDDs, it produces a range of electronic data storage products, including solid state hybrid drives, solid state drives, peripheral component interconnect express (PCIe) cards and serial advanced technology architecture (SATA) controllers.

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