Wolf Hill Capital Management LP reduced its position in shares of Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC – Free Report) by 3.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 590,395 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after selling 22,261 shares during the quarter. Western Digital comprises about 11.2% of Wolf Hill Capital Management LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position. Wolf Hill Capital Management LP owned approximately 0.17% of Western Digital worth $101,707,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WDC. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Western Digital during the 4th quarter worth approximately $788,729,000. Fred Alger Management LLC raised its stake in Western Digital by 4,923.9% during the 3rd quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 3,407,042 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $409,049,000 after buying an additional 3,339,225 shares during the period. Soroban Capital Partners LP raised its stake in Western Digital by 1,926.3% during the 2nd quarter. Soroban Capital Partners LP now owns 3,061,134 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $195,882,000 after buying an additional 2,910,062 shares during the period. Polar Capital Holdings Plc acquired a new position in Western Digital during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $221,800,000. Finally, National Pension Service raised its stake in Western Digital by 267.6% during the 4th quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,691,659 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $291,422,000 after buying an additional 1,231,477 shares during the period. 92.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Western Digital Trading Down 0.0%
Shares of Western Digital stock opened at $562.92 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $447.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $309.01. Western Digital Corporation has a 12-month low of $54.60 and a 12-month high of $602.54. The company has a market capitalization of $194.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.61 and a beta of 2.13.
Western Digital Increases Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. This is a boost from Western Digital’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. Western Digital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 3.58%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of research analysts recently weighed in on WDC shares. Bank of America upped their price target on Western Digital to $495.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Barclays upped their price target on Western Digital from $450.00 to $620.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $488.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price target on Western Digital from $340.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Western Digital from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $340.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Western Digital presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $443.71.
View Our Latest Stock Report on Western Digital
Trending Headlines about Western Digital
Here are the key news stories impacting Western Digital this week:
- Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target on Western Digital from $530 to $650 and reiterated an overweight rating, signaling more upside potential for the shares. Article Title
- Positive Sentiment: The company announced a Sandisk share exchange with institutional investors, a move that has been interpreted as supportive of the stock and part of a broader capital strategy. Article Title
- Positive Sentiment: Western Digital highlighted AI-focused storage innovation at Computex, reinforcing the market’s view that it is well positioned to benefit from data-center and AI infrastructure spending. Article Title
- Positive Sentiment: Analysts also pointed to strong free cash flow, a larger dividend, and a new $4 billion buyback plan, which supports the investment case by showing confidence in cash generation and shareholder returns. Article Title
- Neutral Sentiment: Western Digital has been outperforming the broader market over the past year, and brokerages still generally rate the stock a moderate buy, which supports sentiment but is more of a confirmation than a new catalyst. Article Title
- Negative Sentiment: One recent market note said WDC slipped with the broader market after a hotter-than-expected CPI report revived rate-hike concerns, showing that macro pressure can still weigh on the stock at times. Article Title
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other news, CEO Irving Tan sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.84, for a total value of $8,236,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 598,150 shares in the company, valued at $246,342,096. The trade was a 3.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Bruce E. Kiddoo sold 750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $528.52, for a total value of $396,390.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 3,903 shares in the company, valued at $2,062,813.56. The trade was a 16.12% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 29,322 shares of company stock worth $12,768,550 over the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Western Digital Profile
Western Digital Corporation is a global data storage company that designs, manufactures and sells a broad range of storage devices and systems for personal, enterprise and cloud applications. Headquartered in San Jose, California, the company develops hard disk drives (HDDs), solid-state drives (SSDs), NAND flash components and finished storage products used in PCs, external storage, servers, network-attached storage (NAS) and embedded systems.
Its product portfolio spans consumer and commercial markets, including internal and external HDDs and SSDs, removable flash memory products and storage platforms for data center and enterprise environments.
Further Reading
- Five stocks we like better than Western Digital
- 3 ETFs Giving Ready-Made Access to the Discounted International Small-Cap Space
- What to Expect From Q2 Earnings as Tech Strength Broadens
- Viasat’s Orbiting Profits: Space Force Jackpot?
- Robinhood Wants a Bigger Role in IPOs—Here’s Why It Matters
Receive News & Ratings for Western Digital Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Western Digital and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
