Clearline Capital LP Has $10.98 Million Stake in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC)

Clearline Capital LP increased its position in shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) by 90.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 160,732 shares of the data storage provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 76,120 shares during the period. Clearline Capital LP’s holdings in Western Digital were worth $10,976,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WDC. AGF Management Ltd. grew its position in Western Digital by 28,925.8% during the second quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 2,202,190 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $166,860,000 after buying an additional 2,194,603 shares in the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 247.0% during the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,446,509 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $109,602,000 after purchasing an additional 1,029,658 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Western Digital by 39.6% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,861,229 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $216,795,000 after purchasing an additional 810,977 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in Western Digital by 24.6% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,711,428 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $253,453,000 after purchasing an additional 732,344 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in Western Digital by 304.9% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 709,386 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $53,750,000 after buying an additional 534,168 shares in the last quarter. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WDC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Western Digital from $94.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Western Digital from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Susquehanna raised their price objective on Western Digital from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $95.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities restated a “buy” rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Western Digital currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $87.71.

Western Digital Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:WDC opened at $72.99 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $67.10 and its 200-day moving average is $69.09. Western Digital Co. has a 1 year low of $46.47 and a 1 year high of $81.55. The company has a market capitalization of $25.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.94 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.47 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last posted 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 analysts’ expectations of $4.12 billion. Western Digital had a return on equity of 8.57% and a net margin of 4.81%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($1.97) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 48.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Western Digital Co. will post 6.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Digital

In other news, EVP Robert Soderbery sold 30,767 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.01, for a total transaction of $2,092,463.67. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 135,398 shares in the company, valued at $9,208,417.98. The trade was a 18.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO David Goeckeler sold 75,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.32, for a total transaction of $5,274,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 896,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $63,051,021.60. The trade was a 7.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 185,963 shares of company stock valued at $13,154,039. Corporate insiders own 0.30% 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.