Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Takes $271.56 Million Position in Western Digital Corporation $WDC

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new stake in Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 425,171 shares of the data storage provider’s stock, valued at approximately $271,565,000.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Western Digital by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 41,988 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $1,698,000 after acquiring an additional 3,019 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in Western Digital by 229.7% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,388 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 967 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Western Digital in the second quarter valued at about $307,000. Cresset Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Western Digital during the second quarter worth about $292,000. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. grew its stake in Western Digital by 55.3% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,374 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $152,000 after buying an additional 845 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.51% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Western Digital

In other Western Digital news, insider Cynthia L. Tregillis sold 684 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $446.17, for a total value of $305,180.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 112,146 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,036,180.82. This trade represents a 0.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Bruce E. Kiddoo sold 750 shares of Western Digital 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 sale, the director directly owned 3,903 shares in the company, valued at $2,062,813.56. The trade was a 16.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 25,384 shares of company stock worth $11,753,463. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Western Digital Trading Up 3.5%

Shares of Western Digital stock opened at $450.75 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $543.27 and its 200 day moving average is $436.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $155.36 billion, a PE ratio of 18.62 and a beta of 2.14. Western Digital Corporation has a 1 year low of $77.90 and a 1 year high of $799.87.

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

Western Digital Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on WDC shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Western Digital from $575.00 to $730.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Western Digital from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 16th. Robert W. Baird set a $630.00 price objective on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $575.00 price objective on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Fox Advisors downgraded 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 five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $534.56.

Trending Headlines about Western Digital

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain bullish on Western Digital’s growth outlook. Recent quarterly results exceeded expectations, with EPS of $3.56 and revenue of $3.75 billion, up 43.8% year over year. Fiscal 2027 catalysts include rising hyperscale demand, improving margins, 40TB drive launches and HAMR technology. Prediction: This Memory Stock Will Soar 165% in 3 Years
• Positive Sentiment: Western Digital was highlighted as a top momentum and growth stock, with commentary pointing to strong earnings trends, AI-driven storage demand, cash generation and a potential memory shortage. Brokerages collectively maintain a “Moderate Buy” rating, with a consensus target price above the current trading level. Western Digital Is a Top-Ranked Growth Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Western Digital will present at Citi’s 2026 Global TMT Conference on September 9. The event may provide updates on demand, pricing and its product ramp, but the announcement included no new guidance. WD to Participate in Upcoming Investor Conference
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider Cynthia Tregillis sold 919 shares in two transactions under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The sales reduced her holdings only marginally and are unlikely to materially change the investment case. SEC insider transaction filing
• Negative Sentiment: Profit-taking and sector rotation ahead of Nvidia’s earnings report have pressured high-flying AI, memory and semiconductor stocks, including WDC. Investors are also monitoring valuation risk, cloud-customer concentration and execution requirements for upcoming products. Memory and Semiconductor Stocks Fall Ahead of Nvidia Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that Apple could source memory chips from Chinese suppliers have raised concerns about competition and pricing throughout the memory industry. A discounted 8TB WD My Book drive on Amazon is consumer-oriented news with little direct effect on WDC’s investment outlook. WD 8TB My Book External Hard Drive Price Cut

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.