Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Trading Up 6.8% – Time to Buy?

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) shares traded up 6.8% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $181.49 and last traded at $177.5090. 1,317,957 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 84% from the average session volume of 8,254,721 shares. The stock had previously closed at $166.26.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on WDC shares. China Renaissance started coverage on Western Digital in a report on Friday, December 5th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $193.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird set a $180.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a report on Friday, October 31st. Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Loop Capital upped their price objective on shares of Western Digital to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Mizuho set a $180.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $173.65.

Western Digital Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.78 billion, a PE ratio of 25.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.82. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $150.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $103.91.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 7th. The data storage provider reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of $4.10 billion during the quarter. Western Digital had a return on equity of 30.89% and a net margin of 21.37%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Western Digital Corporation will post 4.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Digital Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 4th will be issued a $0.125 dividend. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 4th. This is an increase from Western Digital’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. Western Digital’s payout ratio is 7.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Digital

In other news, insider Cynthia L. Tregillis sold 2,801 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.57, for a total transaction of $449,756.57. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 144,596 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,217,779.72. This represents a 1.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kimberly Alexy sold 1,768 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.00, for a total transaction of $272,272.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,585 shares in the company, valued at approximately $552,090. This represents a 33.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 26,369 shares of company stock worth $4,013,785. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Digital

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WDC. ORG Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Western Digital by 124.5% during the third quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 211 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 117 shares during the period. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. boosted its holdings in Western Digital by 551.4% during the 3rd quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 241 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the period. Grove Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Western Digital in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Westfuller Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Western Digital in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its stake in Western Digital by 207.0% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 264 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

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.