Empowered Funds LLC Invests $97.52 Million in Western Digital Corporation $WDC

Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 152,676 shares of the data storage provider’s stock, valued at approximately $97,517,000. Western Digital comprises approximately 0.5% of Empowered Funds LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 7.7% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 41,988 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $1,698,000 after acquiring an additional 3,019 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Western Digital by 229.7% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,388 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 967 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Western Digital in the 2nd quarter worth $307,000. Cresset Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Western Digital in the second quarter worth $292,000. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its position in Western Digital by 55.3% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,374 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $152,000 after buying an additional 845 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Western Digital

In related news, insider Cynthia L. Tregillis sold 1,007 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $478.36, for a total transaction of $481,708.52. Following the transaction, the insider owned 112,155 shares in the company, valued at $53,650,465.80. The trade was a 0.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Vidyadhara K. Gubbi sold 2,475 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $556.24, for a total transaction of $1,376,694.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 85,154 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,366,060.96. The trade was a 2.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 26,117 shares of company stock worth $12,053,353 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

More Western Digital News

Here are the key news stories impacting Western Digital this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Western Digital’s AI- and cloud-storage growth thesis remains intact. Industry momentum from AI infrastructure, cloud computing, the Internet of Things and automotive applications is supporting expectations for continued demand. 3 Storage Devices Stocks to Buy as the Industry Gains Momentum
• Positive Sentiment: A recent exchange of approximately $191 million of 3% convertible notes due 2028 is viewed as constructive liability management because it can reduce debt, although issuing shares may create some dilution. What’s Going on With Western Digital Stock on Wednesday?
• Positive Sentiment: Western Digital recently reported revenue growth of 44% year over year to $3.75 billion and earnings of $3.56 per share, exceeding estimates. Its next-quarter earnings guidance of $3.85 to $4.15 per share also supports the bullish fundamental case.
• Positive Sentiment: Technical and analyst indicators remain favorable: a recent hammer chart pattern suggested potential support, while upward earnings-estimate revisions and a bullish Wall Street consensus point to possible longer-term recovery. Western Digital May Find a Bottom Soon

Western Digital Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WDC opened at $462.00 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $532.72 and its 200 day moving average is $439.49. The company has a market cap of $159.24 billion, a PE ratio of 19.08 and a beta of 2.14. Western Digital Corporation has a 1 year low of $77.90 and a 1 year high of $799.87.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The data storage provider reported $3.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by $0.25. Western Digital had a return on equity of 48.15% and a net margin of 72.95%.The firm had revenue of $3.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.70 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.66 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 43.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Western Digital has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 3.850-4.150 EPS. Analysts expect that Western Digital Corporation will post 19.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Digital Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.1%. Western Digital’s payout ratio is 2.48%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WDC. Weiss Ratings cut Western Digital from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. UBS Group dropped their target price on Western Digital from $560.00 to $525.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and set a $575.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Fox Advisors downgraded Western Digital from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Susquehanna increased their price objective on Western Digital from $360.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $534.56.

About Western Digital

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.