Banco Santander S.A. Takes Position in Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC)

Key Points

• Banco Santander S.A. acquired 5,386 shares of Western Digital Corporation, valued at approximately $218,000, during the first quarter.
• Insider trading activity included CEO Irving Tan selling 11,379 shares for over $548,000, marking a 1.84% decrease in ownership.
• Western Digital's stock received mixed analyst ratings, with price targets varying from $53.00 to $95.00, while still maintaining a "Moderate Buy" average rating.

Banco Santander S.A. purchased a new position in Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 5,386 shares of the data storage provider's stock, valued at approximately $218,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake 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 acquiring an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Elequin Capital LP acquired a new stake in Western Digital during the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Western Digital during the first quarter worth about $40,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its holdings in 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 valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 855 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Western Digital by 91.6% in the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 1,044 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 499 shares during the period. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Western Digital

In other news, CEO Irving Tan sold 11,379 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.19, for a total value of $548,354.01. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 605,481 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,178,129.39. This represents a 1.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 1,729 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.88, for a total transaction of $94,887.52. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 40,089 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,200,084.32. This trade represents a 4.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 13,353 shares of company stock worth $657,454. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. TD Securities reduced their price target on shares of Western Digital from $80.00 to $53.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Benchmark raised their target price on Western Digital from $58.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Rosenblatt Securities upped their price target on Western Digital from $53.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. TD Cowen increased their price target on Western Digital from $58.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $95.00 price objective (up from $80.00) on shares of Western Digital in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Four research 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 stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $78.74.

Western Digital Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:WDC opened at $75.84 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company's 50 day moving average is $63.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.00. The company has a market cap of $26.46 billion, a PE ratio of 14.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.58. Western Digital Corporation has a 52 week low of $28.83 and a 52 week high of $78.80.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The data storage provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.18. Western Digital had a net margin of 14.13% and a return on equity of 24.93%. The company had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.45 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.44 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 30.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Western Digital Corporation will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Western Digital Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 4th will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 4th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Western Digital's payout ratio is 7.77%.

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.

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