Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Purchases New Position in Western Digital Corporation $WDC

Key Points

• Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC has acquired a new stake in Western Digital Corporation, purchasing 5,567 shares for approximately $356,000 during the second quarter.
• The stock has shown a 0.1% decline recently and has a market capitalization of $41.62 billion along with a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.57.
• Western Digital announced a quarterly dividend of $0.10 per share, equating to an annualized yield of 0.3% and a payout ratio of 7.77%.

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 5,567 shares of the data storage provider's stock, valued at approximately $356,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WDC. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new stake in Western Digital in the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in 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 purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Western Digital in the 1st quarter worth approximately $40,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its position 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 worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 855 shares during the period. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group grew its position in Western Digital by 91.2% in the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,279 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 610 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.51% of the company's stock.

Western Digital Stock Down 0.1%

WDC opened at $121.41 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.08. Western Digital Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $28.83 and a fifty-two week high of $137.40. The firm's fifty day moving average is $101.20 and its 200 day moving average is $71.09. The stock has a market cap of $41.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.77.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 7th. The data storage provider reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter. Western Digital had a net margin of 14.13% and a return on equity of 24.93%. The company had revenue of $4.10 billion for the quarter. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Western Digital Corporation will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Digital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th were paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 4th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Western Digital's payout ratio is 7.77%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on WDC shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Western Digital from $92.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Western Digital from $95.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 13th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Western Digital from $141.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price target on shares of Western Digital from $90.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $108.85.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Vidyadhara K. Gubbi sold 11,343 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.29, for a total transaction of $1,024,159.47. Following the transaction, the insider owned 151,596 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,687,602.84. The trade was a 6.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 3,160 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.68, for a total transaction of $239,148.80. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 31,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,388,460.80. This trade represents a 9.10% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 49,730 shares of company stock worth $3,921,594 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.18% 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.