Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Shares Down 5.2% on Insider Selling

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC)’s stock price was down 5.2% during trading on Monday after an insider sold shares in the company. The company traded as low as $419.54 and last traded at $435.38. 7,742,487 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 13% from the average session volume of 8,877,335 shares. The stock had previously closed at $459.44.

Specifically, insider Cynthia L. Tregillis sold 684 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $446.17, for a total transaction of $305,180.28. Following the transaction, the insider owned 112,146 shares in the company, valued at $50,036,180.82. This trade represents a 0.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Cynthia L. Tregillis sold 235 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $477.27, for a total transaction of $112,158.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 113,928 shares in the company, valued at approximately $54,374,416.56. This represents a 0.21% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on WDC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $530.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $575.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Western Digital from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Western Digital from $450.00 to $620.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on Western Digital from $660.00 to $900.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $534.56.

Key Stories Impacting Western Digital

Here are the key news stories impacting Western Digital this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and financial commentators continue to highlight Western Digital as a leading AI-storage opportunity. Hyperscale data-center demand, rising storage requirements, improving margins and strong cash generation support the bullish thesis. Western Digital vs. Teradata: Which AI Data Stock Has Stronger Upside?
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage projects substantial long-term upside for WDC amid a potential memory shortage, and Zacks identified the stock as a top-ranked growth and momentum name. The company’s latest quarterly results also support sentiment: earnings and revenue exceeded estimates, with revenue up approximately 44% year over year and fiscal 2027 guidance pointing to continued growth. Prediction: This Memory Stock Will Soar 165% in 3 Years
• Positive Sentiment: Western Digital retains a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, with several analysts maintaining targets materially above recent trading levels. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, although the roughly 0.1% yield is unlikely to be a major stock catalyst. Western Digital Receives Consensus Rating of Moderate Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Management will present at Citi’s 2026 Global TMT Conference on September 9. Investors may look for updates on demand, pricing and the planned 40TB and HAMR product ramp, but the announcement provided no new guidance. WD to Participate in Upcoming Investor Conference
• Neutral Sentiment: Director Cynthia Tregillis sold 919 shares in two transactions under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The small reduction in her holdings is less meaningful as a bearish signal because the sales were scheduled in advance. SEC insider transaction filing
• Negative Sentiment: Western Digital is assessing potential exposure to new U.S. sanctions involving countries that trade with Iran. Possible effects include higher compliance costs, disrupted shipment routes and supply-chain or contract-manufacturing complications. Western Digital Is Assessing New Iran Sanctions Exposure
• Negative Sentiment: Recent selling in memory and AI-related stocks reflects investor rotation ahead of Nvidia’s earnings, while reports that Apple could source memory chips from Chinese suppliers raise competitive and pricing concerns. A discounted WD external-drive promotion also highlights potential pressure in consumer storage pricing. Memory and AI Stocks Face Investor Selling

Western Digital Trading Up 3.5%

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $543.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $436.75. The company has a market cap of $155.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.62 and a beta of 2.14.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The data storage provider reported $3.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.31 by $0.25. Western Digital had a net margin of 72.95% and a return on equity of 48.15%. The business had revenue of $3.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.66 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 43.8% on a year-over-year basis. Western Digital has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 3.850-4.150 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Western Digital Corporation will post 19.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Digital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.1%. Western Digital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 2.48%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Digital

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its stake in Western Digital by 4,070.0% during the second quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 417 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 407 shares in the last quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Western Digital in the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Dunhill Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Valley Wealth Managers Inc. bought a new position in Western Digital during the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

Western Digital Company Profile

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.