Leuthold Group LLC Invests $222,000 in Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC)

Leuthold Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital Co. (NASDAQ:WDC) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,926 shares of the data storage provider’s stock, valued at approximately $222,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WDC. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in Western Digital by 1.3% during the second quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 15,962 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $1,209,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its stake in shares of Western Digital by 15.6% in the 2nd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,527 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $116,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. grew its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 10.7% during the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 2,203 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $167,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its position in Western Digital by 37.3% in the 1st quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 843 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the period. Finally, Hanseatic Management Services Inc. raised its position in Western Digital by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 10,344 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $784,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares during the period. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Digital

In other news, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 417 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.89, for a total value of $27,059.13. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 28,870 shares in the company, valued at $1,873,374.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Western Digital news, EVP Robert Soderbery sold 12,154 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.09, for a total value of $693,871.86. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 128,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,331,098.17. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Gene M. Zamiska sold 417 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.89, for a total value of $27,059.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 28,870 shares in the company, valued at $1,873,374.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 17,955 shares of company stock worth $1,053,560. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Western Digital Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WDC opened at $65.97 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $21.54 billion, a P/E ratio of -13.27 and a beta of 1.39. Western Digital Co. has a twelve month low of $35.62 and a twelve month high of $81.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The company has a 50 day moving average of $65.15 and a 200 day moving average of $69.46.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The data storage provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.17. Western Digital had a negative return on equity of 2.63% and a negative net margin of 3.75%. The firm had revenue of $3.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.77 billion. As a group, research analysts expect that Western Digital Co. will post 7.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WDC. Summit Insights cut Western Digital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Citigroup reduced their price target on Western Digital from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Loop Capital lifted their price target on Western Digital from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th. Mizuho increased their price objective on Western Digital from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Finally, Benchmark raised their target price on shares of Western Digital from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $83.05.

About Western Digital

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.