Gene M. Zamiska Sells 245 Shares of Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) Stock

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 245 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.01, for a total value of $14,212.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 39,604 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,297,428.04. The trade was a 0.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Western Digital Price Performance

Shares of WDC traded up $0.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $59.29. 9,426,256 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,512,165. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 1.56. Western Digital Corporation has a 1-year low of $28.83 and a 1-year high of $80.38. The stock has a market cap of $20.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.23 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a 50 day moving average of $47.63 and a 200-day moving average of $53.44.

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

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

Western Digital Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th were paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.67%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 4th. Western Digital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on WDC shares. Summit Insights upgraded Western Digital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen started coverage on Western Digital in a report on Friday, May 2nd. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Bank of America upped their target price on Western Digital from $62.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, BNP Paribas reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Western Digital in a report on Friday, May 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $63.79.

Institutional Trading of Western Digital

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new position in Western Digital during the 1st quarter worth $29,000. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Western Digital in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of Western Digital by 34.1% during the first quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 955 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Elequin Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.51% 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.