J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Sells 12,989 Shares of Western Digital Corporation $WDC

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG lowered its position in Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) by 58.3% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 9,280 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after selling 12,989 shares during the period. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG’s holdings in Western Digital were worth $594,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new position in shares of Western Digital in the first quarter worth $29,000. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 34.1% in 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 during the period. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Western Digital in the first quarter worth $40,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 242.2% in the first 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 increased its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 91.2% in the first 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 Performance

NASDAQ WDC opened at $131.31 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $90.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $64.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Western Digital Corporation has a 12-month low of $28.83 and a 12-month high of $137.40. The firm has a market cap of $45.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.50, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.77.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The data storage provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.18. Western Digital had a net margin of 14.13% and a return on equity of 24.93%. The business had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.45 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.44 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 30.0% on a year-over-year basis. Western Digital has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.540-1.690 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Western Digital Corporation will post 4.89 EPS for the current year.

Western Digital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 4th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 4th. Western Digital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Susquehanna increased their target price on Western Digital from $40.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Western Digital from $92.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Western Digital from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Western Digital from $80.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 11th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $91.47.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Digital

In other news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 353 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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. This represents a 1.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Cynthia L. Tregillis sold 14,067 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.78, for a total transaction of $1,051,930.26. Following the sale, the insider owned 135,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,121,547.78. This represents a 9.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 49,730 shares of company stock valued at $3,921,594. Corporate insiders own 0.30% 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.