NWI Management LP Acquires Shares of 360,000 Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC)

NWI Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 360,000 shares of the data storage provider’s stock, valued at approximately $21,467,000. Western Digital comprises 0.9% of NWI Management LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Western Digital during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Comprehensive Financial Planning Inc. PA bought a new position in Western Digital in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Western Digital in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. S.A. Mason LLC bought a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 91.6% in the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 1,044 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 499 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

Western Digital Trading Up 5.2%

Shares of WDC opened at $49.01 on Wednesday. Western Digital Co. has a 1-year low of $28.83 and a 1-year high of $81.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $40.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $55.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.67 and a beta of 1.42.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The data storage provider reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.30. Western Digital had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 15.68%. The firm had revenue of ($1,465.00) million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.63 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 33.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Western Digital Co. will post 4.89 EPS for the current year.

Western Digital declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, May 13th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the data storage provider to reacquire up to 11.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Western Digital Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 4th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. Western Digital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Western Digital news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 1,659 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.36, for a total transaction of $68,616.24. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 43,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,810,575.36. The trade was a 3.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Western Digital from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $89.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Loop Capital restated a “buy” rating on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Benchmark raised shares of Western Digital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Western Digital from $100.00 to $80.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $64.15.

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.