Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) Shares Purchased by Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its stake in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) by 556.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 262,900 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 222,872 shares during the quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund owned 0.08% of Western Digital worth $17,953,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Western Digital

In related news, CEO David Goeckeler sold 75,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.58, for a total value of $5,443,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 821,630 shares in the company, valued at $59,633,905.40. This trade represents a 8.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 658 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.99, for a total transaction of $46,053.42. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 28,863 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,020,121.37. The trade was a 2.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 185,963 shares of company stock worth $13,154,039 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Western Digital Stock Performance

NASDAQ WDC opened at $71.50 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Western Digital Co. has a 52-week low of $46.42 and a 52-week high of $81.55. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $66.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $69.09. The firm has a market cap of $24.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.06 and a beta of 1.40.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The data storage provider reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.55 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $4.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.12 billion. Western Digital had a return on equity of 8.57% and a net margin of 4.81%. The business’s revenue was up 48.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($1.97) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Western Digital Co. will post 6.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. BNP Paribas decreased their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $95.00 to $90.00 in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Western Digital from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $95.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Tuesday. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of Western Digital from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Western Digital from $74.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $87.71.

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.