Western Digital Corporation $WDC Shares Purchased by Gotham Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Gotham Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Western Digital Corporation by 14.0% during the first quarter, owning approximately 0.11% of the company worth about $14.8 million.
• Western Digital reported $1.66 earnings per share for the last quarter, beating analysts' expectations, with a 30% increase in revenue year-over-year.
• The company initiated a share buyback plan allowing repurchases up to $2 billion, indicating the board's belief that its shares are undervalued.

Gotham Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC - Free Report) by 14.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 366,853 shares of the data storage provider's stock after purchasing an additional 44,925 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC owned 0.11% of Western Digital worth $14,832,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WDC. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in Western Digital during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Allworth Financial LP increased its position 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 purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Elequin Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 1st quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its position 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 buying an additional 855 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.51% of the company's stock.

Western Digital Stock Performance

WDC stock traded up $1.25 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $94.54. The company had a trading volume of 6,357,889 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,931,637. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $73.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $56.01. The company has a market cap of $32.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.69. 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 twelve month low of $28.83 and a twelve month high of $95.37.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The data storage provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.45 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.44 EPS. Western Digital's revenue for the quarter was up 30.0% on a year-over-year basis. Western Digital has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.540-1.690 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Western Digital Corporation will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Digital announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, May 13th that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the data storage provider to purchase up to 11.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Western Digital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 4th. Western Digital's payout ratio is presently 7.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Digital

In other Western Digital news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 353 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.90, for a total transaction of $28,557.70. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 27,425 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,218,682.50. The trade was a 1.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Vidyadhara K. Gubbi sold 11,343 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider owned 151,596 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,687,602.84. The trade was a 6.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 49,975 shares of company stock valued at $3,935,806. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WDC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Western Digital from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $70.00 price objective on the stock. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $40.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $58.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $53.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $80.50.

Western Digital 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.