Quantbot Technologies LP Invests $2.43 Million in Western Digital Corporation $WDC

Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 60,116 shares of the data storage provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,430,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 34.1% in the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 955 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Elequin Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 1st quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 242.2% in the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 1,208 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 855 shares in the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Western Digital news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 1,729 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.88, for a total value of $94,887.52. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 40,089 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,200,084.32. This trade represents a 4.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Vidyadhara K. Gubbi sold 5,597 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.26, for a total value of $426,827.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 154,679 shares in the company, valued at $11,795,820.54. The trade was a 3.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 11,518 shares of company stock worth $831,479 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Western Digital Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of WDC opened at $75.64 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.69, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.58. 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 business’s fifty day moving average price is $67.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $54.80. Western Digital Corporation has a 52 week low of $28.83 and a 52 week high of $78.80.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The data storage provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.45 billion. Western Digital had a return on equity of 24.93% and a net margin of 14.13%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 30.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.44 EPS. Western Digital has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.540-1.690 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Western Digital Corporation will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Digital declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, May 13th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the data storage provider to repurchase up to 11.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Western Digital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 4th will be given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 4th. Western Digital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WDC. Wedbush increased their target price on Western Digital from $78.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Summit Insights raised Western Digital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Western Digital in a report on Thursday, July 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $70.00 price target for the company. Mizuho raised their price target on Western Digital from $75.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Western Digital from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Western Digital has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $78.39.

About Western Digital

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.