Insider Selling: Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Insider Sells $194,918.40 in Stock

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) insider Cynthia Tregillis sold 432 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $451.20, for a total transaction of $194,918.40. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 111,030 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,096,736. This represents a 0.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Western Digital Stock Down 4.4%

WDC stock opened at $460.93 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $158.87 billion, a PE ratio of 19.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 2.13. The business has a 50 day moving average of $495.23 and a 200-day moving average of $452.06. Western Digital Corporation has a 12-month low of $94.41 and a 12-month high of $799.87.

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

Western Digital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be given 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 currently 2.48%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on WDC. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on shares of Western Digital from $660.00 to $900.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $800.00 to $740.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Robert W. Baird set a $630.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Western Digital from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $575.00 price target on shares of Western Digital in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $534.56.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Western Digital

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WDC. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Western Digital by 4,070.0% in the second quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 417 shares of the data storage provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 407 shares during the period. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Western Digital in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Dunhill Financial LLC purchased a new position in Western Digital in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd purchased a new position in Western Digital in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Valley Wealth Managers Inc. purchased a new position in Western Digital in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 92.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Western Digital News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Citi reaffirmed its Buy rating and raised its price target to $740. Analyst Asiya Merchant cited strong AI-driven storage demand and supply constraints. The target remains well above recent trading levels. Western Digital Buy Rating Reaffirmed
• Positive Sentiment: Western Digital’s latest results remain a fundamental support. The company exceeded quarterly EPS and revenue estimates, with revenue up 43.8% year over year, and issued fiscal first-quarter 2027 EPS guidance of $3.85 to $4.15. Western Digital Earnings and Stock Information
• Neutral Sentiment: The decline was broadly sector-driven. Western Digital fell alongside Seagate and Micron as higher Treasury yields and rising oil prices pressured growth-oriented technology stocks. The company had no new earnings warning or negative corporate announcement. Memory Stocks Slide as Rates and Oil Rise
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short-interest data appears unreliable. The latest report lists zero shares short and zero days to cover, while also describing a significant increase; investors should not treat this as a meaningful trading signal.
• Negative Sentiment: Repeated insider selling added to investor caution. Recent filings showed sales by executives and directors, and Quiver reported 110 insider sales versus no purchases over the past six months. Several transactions were conducted under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans, which reduces their significance but may still weigh on sentiment. Western Digital Insider Selling

Western Digital Company Profile

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: WDC) develops, manufactures and sells data storage products and solutions for data centers, cloud service providers, enterprises, businesses and consumers. Its portfolio is centered on hard disk drives (HDDs), including high-capacity enterprise drives used in cloud and data center environments, as well as products for network-attached storage, surveillance and personal computing.

The company markets products under brands including Western Digital, WD, WD_BLACK and Ultrastar.