The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Takes $120.88 Million Position in Western Digital Corporation $WDC

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 189,249 shares of the data storage provider’s stock, valued at approximately $120,877,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Western Digital by 4,070.0% in the second quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 417 shares of the data storage provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 407 shares during the period. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Western Digital in the second quarter worth $28,000. Dunhill Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Western Digital during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Gables Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Western Digital during the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. 92.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WDC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of Western Digital from $360.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Zacks Research raised Western Digital from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $560.00 to $525.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Mizuho set a $590.00 target price on Western Digital in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $534.56.

Western Digital Stock Up 3.5%

WDC stock opened at $450.75 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $155.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.62 and a beta of 2.14. Western Digital Corporation has a twelve month low of $77.90 and a twelve month high of $799.87. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $543.27 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $436.75.

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

Western Digital Announces Dividend

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

More Western Digital News

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

Insider Activity at Western Digital

In related news, insider Cynthia L. Tregillis sold 808 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $529.63, for a total value of $427,941.04. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 114,539 shares in the company, valued at $60,663,290.57. The trade was a 0.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Bruce E. Kiddoo sold 750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $528.52, for a total transaction of $396,390.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 3,903 shares in the company, valued at $2,062,813.56. This trade represents a 16.12% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 25,384 shares of company stock valued at $11,753,463. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Western Digital Company Profile

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.