Vanguard Group Inc. Increases Stock Position in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC)

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 38,579,938 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after buying an additional 215,207 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 11.84% of Western Digital worth $2,020,431,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WDC. Pathstone Family Office LLC purchased a new position in shares of Western Digital in the third quarter valued at approximately $289,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale boosted its stake in shares of Western Digital by 1.1% in the third quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 59,096 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $2,701,000 after purchasing an additional 626 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP boosted its stake in shares of Western Digital by 0.8% in the third quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 63,319 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $2,889,000 after purchasing an additional 528 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its holdings in Western Digital by 199.9% in the third quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 7,465 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $341,000 after acquiring an additional 4,976 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC raised its holdings in Western Digital by 239.7% in the third quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 86,888 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $3,965,000 after acquiring an additional 61,309 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Western Digital

In related news, Director Kimberly Alexy sold 2,648 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.95, for a total value of $185,227.60. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 20,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,434,604.55. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, EVP Robert Soderbery sold 26,853 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.48, for a total value of $1,973,158.44. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 144,623 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,626,898.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Kimberly Alexy sold 2,648 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.95, for a total transaction of $185,227.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 20,509 shares in the company, valued at $1,434,604.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 30,579 shares of company stock worth $2,238,595. Insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Western Digital Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of WDC opened at $80.23 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.86. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $73.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $62.67. Western Digital Co. has a 12-month low of $35.62 and a 12-month high of $81.55.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The data storage provider reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.42. The business had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.37 billion. Western Digital had a negative net margin of 12.87% and a negative return on equity of 13.75%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($1.57) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Western Digital Co. will post -1.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Western Digital from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. StockNews.com raised shares of Western Digital from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 4th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Western Digital from $72.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Western Digital from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Western Digital from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Western Digital presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $82.09.

Western Digital Company Profile

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.