Key Points
- Insider sale: Director Kimberly Alexy sold 1,768 shares on Nov. 25 at an average price of $154 for $272,272, leaving her with 3,585 shares — a 33.03% reduction in her ownership.
- Dividend increase: Western Digital raised its quarterly dividend to $0.125 (from $0.10), payable Dec. 18 to holders of record Dec. 4, equal to a $0.50 annualized payout and about a 0.3% yield.
- Analyst sentiment: Multiple firms lifted targets (Wells Fargo and Mizuho to $180) and MarketBeat shows a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a $162.16 target.
Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) Director Kimberly Alexy sold 1,768 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.00, for a total value of $272,272.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,585 shares in the company, valued at approximately $552,090. This represents a 33.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.
Western Digital Stock Up 1.5%
Western Digital stock opened at $157.74 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $53.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.63, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.81. Western Digital Corporation has a 52-week low of $28.83 and a 52-week high of $178.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.08. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $134.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $91.50.
Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 7th. The data storage provider reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter. Western Digital had a net margin of 14.13% and a return on equity of 24.93%. The company had revenue of $4.10 billion during the quarter. Equities analysts predict that Western Digital Corporation will post 4.89 EPS for the current year.
Western Digital Increases Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 4th will be given a $0.125 dividend. This is a boost from Western Digital's previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 4th. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Western Digital's dividend payout ratio is 7.28%.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
WDC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $150.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Mizuho increased their price target on Western Digital from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Western Digital in a report on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Western Digital from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Western Digital currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $162.16.
Get Our Latest Analysis on WDC
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WDC. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Western Digital by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 43,282,393 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $5,196,484,000 after acquiring an additional 243,177 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Western Digital by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,305,289 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $593,045,000 after purchasing an additional 186,030 shares in the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Western Digital during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $791,317,000. Holocene Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Western Digital by 8.5% in the 2nd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 5,535,972 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $354,247,000 after buying an additional 431,419 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 130.0% in the first quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 5,029,359 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $203,337,000 after acquiring an additional 2,842,822 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.51% of the company's stock.
Western Digital Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
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.
Further Reading
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