Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Acquires New Position in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC)

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 120,304 shares of the data storage provider's stock, valued at approximately $4,864,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Western Digital during the fourth quarter worth $352,572,000. AMF Tjanstepension AB purchased a new stake in Western Digital in the fourth quarter valued at $94,181,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Western Digital by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,459,767 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $2,531,876,000 after purchasing an additional 1,439,149 shares during the period. Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Western Digital during the 4th quarter valued at about $68,950,000. Finally, Atalan Capital Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 4th quarter valued at about $62,612,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.51% of the company's stock.

Western Digital Price Performance

Shares of WDC traded down $0.29 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $55.66. 2,963,087 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,444,871. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.99. Western Digital Co. has a 12-month low of $28.83 and a 12-month high of $81.55. The company has a market cap of $19.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.25 and a beta of 1.49. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $44.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $54.02.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The data storage provider reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.30. The business had revenue of ($1,465.00) million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.70 billion. Western Digital had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 15.68%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 33.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.63 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Western Digital Co. will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Digital Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 4th. Western Digital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.58%.

Western Digital announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, May 13th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the data storage provider to purchase up to 11.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on WDC. Bank of America lifted their price target on Western Digital from $62.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Loop Capital reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Rosenblatt Securities lowered their price target on shares of Western Digital from $76.00 to $50.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $72.00 to $40.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $63.37.

Insider Transactions at Western Digital

In other Western Digital news, CEO Irving Tan sold 11,379 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.19, for a total transaction of $548,354.01. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 605,481 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,178,129.39. This trade represents a 1.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 1,729 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.88, for a total value of $94,887.52. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 40,089 shares in the company, valued at $2,200,084.32. This trade represents a 4.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

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.