Western Digital Corporation $WDC Stock: Machina Capital S.A.S. Increases Stake

Machina Capital S.A.S. lifted its position in Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) by 1,047.4% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 4,934 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,504 shares during the period. Machina Capital S.A.S.’s holdings in Western Digital were worth $2,242,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in WDC. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Western Digital during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Dunhill Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Western Digital in the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. raised its stake in shares of Western Digital by 182.6% during the third quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 65 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd bought a new position in shares of Western Digital during the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Valley Wealth Managers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the first quarter worth about $32,000. 92.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Western Digital Trading Down 0.7%

NASDAQ:WDC opened at $311.21 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $394.64 and a 200-day moving average price of $420.18. The stock has a market cap of $116.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 2.27. Western Digital Corporation has a 12 month low of $132.43 and a 12 month high of $799.87.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The data storage provider reported $4.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.11 by $0.53. Western Digital had a net margin of 69.20% and a return on equity of 55.62%. The company had revenue of $4.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.78 earnings per share. Western Digital’s quarterly revenue was up 55.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Western Digital Corporation will post 23.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Digital Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.1750 per share. This is a positive change from Western Digital’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 4th. This represents a $0.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.2%. Western Digital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 2.33%.

Key Stories Impacting Western Digital

Here are a few of the latest stories about WDC:

• Positive Sentiment: Western Digital guided for about $5.1 billion in quarterly revenue and gross margins as high as 61%. The company’s strong outlook helped lift AI- and storage-related shares in the prior session. Western Digital Stocks Climb as AI Storage Names Rebound
• Neutral Sentiment: After a steep pullback, some coverage argues WDC’s valuation and technical signals could present an opportunity. However, the stock’s sharp swings make the timing and durability of a recovery uncertain. SanDisk, Western Digital Are Down 60%—Are Memory Investors Getting a Second Chance?
• Negative Sentiment: Reported open-market insider transactions over the past six months were sales, with no purchases noted. That may add to caution amid the stock’s recent volatility, although insider sales alone do not establish a bearish outlook. Why Western Digital Stock Is Up Today

Insider Activity at Western Digital

In related news, insider Cynthia L. Tregillis sold 1,007 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $478.36, for a total value of $481,708.52. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 112,155 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $53,650,465.80. This represents a 0.89% 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. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Vidyadhara K. Gubbi sold 1,795 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $459.87, for a total value of $825,466.65. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 80,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,052,185.77. The trade was a 2.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 5,436 shares of company stock valued at $2,440,664 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WDC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Susquehanna set a $405.00 price target on Western Digital in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Western Digital from $540.00 to $430.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Mizuho set a $490.00 price objective on Western Digital in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $540.00 target price on Western Digital in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $591.04.

About Western Digital

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: WDC) develops and supplies hard disk drives (HDDs) and related data-storage products. Its drives serve data centers and cloud providers, as well as businesses and consumers who need storage for computers, network-attached storage systems, surveillance and other applications. Its product brands include WD and Ultrastar. Founded in 1970, the company began as an electronics and semiconductor business before expanding into data storage. In February 2025, Western Digital completed the separation of its flash-memory business into the independently traded SanDisk Corporation, leaving Western Digital focused on HDDs.