Cheviot Value Management LLC Invests $319,000 in Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC)

Key Points

• Cheviot Value Management LLC has acquired a new stake in Western Digital Corporation, purchasing 7,884 shares valued at approximately $319,000 in the first quarter.
• Western Digital reported a 30% year-over-year revenue increase with quarterly earnings of $1.66 per share, surpassing analysts' expectations.
• The company has authorized a $2 billion share repurchase program to buy back up to 11.7% of its outstanding shares, indicating confidence in its stock value.

Cheviot Value Management LLC acquired a new stake in Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 7,884 shares of the data storage provider's stock, valued at approximately $319,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WDC. Elequin Capital LP bought a new position in Western Digital in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in Western Digital by 34.1% during the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 955 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the period. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Western Digital during the 1st quarter valued at about $40,000. GeoWealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Western Digital by 91.6% during the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 1,044 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 499 shares during the period. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 855 shares during the period. 92.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Western Digital Stock Down 1.3%

NASDAQ:WDC traded down $0.97 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $74.87. The stock had a trading volume of 1,413,029 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,003,859. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Western Digital Corporation has a twelve month low of $28.83 and a twelve month high of $78.80. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $63.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $54.00. The company has a market capitalization of $26.12 billion, a PE ratio of 14.52, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.58.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The data storage provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.45 billion. Western Digital had a net margin of 14.13% and a return on equity of 24.93%. The business's revenue was up 30.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.44 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Western Digital Corporation will post 4.89 EPS for the current year.

Western Digital announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, May 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the data storage provider to repurchase up to 11.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Western Digital Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Digital

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on WDC shares. Citigroup boosted their price target on Western Digital from $78.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. UBS Group upped their target price on Western Digital from $45.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Bank of America boosted 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, June 9th. BNP Paribas reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Loop Capital restated a "buy" rating on shares of Western Digital in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Western Digital has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $78.74.

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.