Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. Purchases 108,403 Shares of Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC)

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its stake in shares of Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC - Free Report) by 617.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 125,971 shares of the data storage provider's stock after acquiring an additional 108,403 shares during the quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.'s holdings in Western Digital were worth $5,093,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WDC. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Western Digital in the 4th quarter worth approximately $352,572,000. AMF Tjanstepension AB bought a new stake in Western Digital in the fourth quarter valued at $94,181,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased 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 valued at $2,531,876,000 after purchasing an additional 1,439,149 shares during the period. Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new position in Western Digital during the 4th quarter valued at $68,950,000. Finally, Atalan Capital Partners LP bought a new position in Western Digital in the 4th quarter worth $62,612,000. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Western Digital Stock Up 1.3%

NASDAQ:WDC traded up $0.83 on Wednesday, reaching $64.67. 969,470 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,502,824. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $51.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $52.92. The company has a market capitalization of $22.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.21 and a beta of 1.53. Western Digital Corporation has a 12 month low of $28.83 and a 12 month high of $80.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The data storage provider reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.30. Western Digital had a net margin of 13.33% and a return on equity of 20.58%. The company had revenue of ($1,465.00) million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.63 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 33.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Western Digital Corporation will post 4.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Digital announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, May 13th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the data storage provider to buy up to 11.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Western Digital Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th were issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 4th. Western Digital's payout ratio is currently 7.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Digital

In other news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 1,729 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.88, for a total value of $94,887.52. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 40,089 shares in the company, valued at $2,200,084.32. The trade was a 4.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Irving Tan sold 11,379 shares of the business'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 transaction of $548,354.01. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 605,481 shares of the company's stock, 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. Insiders have sold 13,353 shares of company stock worth $657,454 over the last ninety days. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WDC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Western Digital from $80.00 to $58.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. TD Securities cut their price objective on Western Digital from $80.00 to $53.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Mizuho decreased their target price on Western Digital from $82.00 to $68.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Summit Insights upgraded Western Digital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Western Digital has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $63.79.

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.