LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. grew its position in shares of Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC – Free Report) by 325.1% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 68,870 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 52,670 shares during the period. Western Digital comprises 0.8% of LGT Fund Management Co Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Western Digital were worth $18,629,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WDC. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 23.5% in the 1st quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 530 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $158,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Western Digital during the first quarter valued at $1,265,000. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI boosted its position in shares of Western Digital by 38.3% during the first quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 7,358 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $1,990,000 after buying an additional 2,037 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in Western Digital by 257.5% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 72,692 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $19,663,000 after buying an additional 52,359 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Warburton Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Western Digital in the first quarter worth approximately $214,000. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Western Digital Stock Up 0.8%
WDC traded up $4.54 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $582.59. The company had a trading volume of 4,801,298 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,095,433. Western Digital Corporation has a 1 year low of $64.23 and a 1 year high of $799.87. The company has a market cap of $200.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.78 and a beta of 2.11. The business has a 50-day moving average of $555.90 and a two-hundred day moving average of $372.84.
Western Digital Increases Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.1%. This is a positive change from Western Digital’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. Western Digital’s dividend payout ratio is currently 3.58%.
Insider Buying and Selling at Western Digital
In related news, Director Bruce E. Kiddoo sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $528.52, for a total value of $396,390.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 3,903 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,062,813.56. This trade represents a 16.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Vidyadhara K. Gubbi sold 2,475 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $556.24, for a total value of $1,376,694.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 85,154 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,366,060.96. This represents a 2.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 29,322 shares of company stock valued at $12,768,550 over the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
WDC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Western Digital from $310.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Rosenblatt Securities raised their target price on Western Digital from $340.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Melius Research set a $1,050.00 price target on Western Digital and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Western Digital from $450.00 to $620.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Fox Advisors downgraded shares of Western Digital from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Western Digital currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $508.32.
Read Our Latest Research Report on Western Digital
Western Digital News Roundup
Here are the key news stories impacting Western Digital this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Analysts turned more bullish on Western Digital, with reports highlighting strong AI storage demand and multiple price-target hikes, including Susquehanna’s increase to $500 and broader Wall Street optimism. Seagate Stock Rises After Analyst Upgrades To Buy. Western Digital Nabs Price-Target Hike.
- Positive Sentiment: Recent articles say WDC is benefiting from a rebound in memory and storage stocks as investors regain confidence in AI infrastructure spending and storage demand. Western Digital and Seagate Surge 7%, Micron and SanDisk Climb 6% as Memory Selloff Reverses
- Positive Sentiment: Zacks and other commentary continue to frame Western Digital as an AI infrastructure winner, citing strong revenue growth, margin expansion, and an improved outlook for future earnings. Micron & One AI Infrastructure Stock to Buy Now for Big Upside
- Neutral Sentiment: One item flagged an apparent short-interest update showing zero shares reported, but the data appears unusual and is unlikely to be a meaningful trading signal on its own.
- Negative Sentiment: Some valuation-focused commentary suggests the stock may be getting expensive on earnings metrics even after its strong run, which could limit upside if growth expectations cool. Western Digital (WDC) Stock Looks Cheap On Cash Flow But Rich On Earnings
About Western Digital
Western Digital Corporation is a global data storage company that designs, manufactures and sells a broad range of storage devices and systems for personal, enterprise and cloud applications. Headquartered in San Jose, California, the company develops hard disk drives (HDDs), solid-state drives (SSDs), NAND flash components and finished storage products used in PCs, external storage, servers, network-attached storage (NAS) and embedded systems.
Its product portfolio spans consumer and commercial markets, including internal and external HDDs and SSDs, removable flash memory products and storage platforms for data center and enterprise environments.
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