Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Shares Up 1.5% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Western Digital shares rose 1.5% to $448.17 amid optimism that AI inference, sovereign AI, neoclouds and data-center expansion will drive demand for high-capacity HDDs, while tight industry supply could support pricing and margins.
• The company reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $3.56 beating estimates of $3.31 and revenue rising 43.8% year over year to $3.75 billion. Western Digital guided for fiscal Q1 2027 EPS of $3.85–$4.15.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $534.56, though some firms have downgraded the stock and investors are weighing whether elevated AI-storage expectations can support its valuation.

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) rose 1.5% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $460.49 and last traded at $448.17. 7,389,750 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 14% from the average session volume of 8,596,557 shares. The stock had previously closed at $441.36.

Western Digital News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: AI inference workloads, sovereign AI projects, neocloud operators and physical-AI applications are expected to broaden demand for Western Digital’s high-capacity hard-disk drives. Industry supply remains tight, potentially giving WDC additional pricing leverage and supporting revenue and margins. Can Sovereign AI and Neoclouds Extend Western Digital's Growth Run?
• Positive Sentiment: Western Digital and Seagate showcased high-capacity storage technology at the AI Infrastructure Summit, reinforcing the investment case that data-center expansion will require substantial storage capacity in addition to computing hardware. WD And Seagate Showed High Capacity Storage At The AI Infra Summit
• Positive Sentiment: Broader technology and memory-stock strength provided a supportive trading environment. Analysts also point to accelerating enterprise-storage demand tied to AI inference as a near-term catalyst for WDC. What's Going on With Western Digital Stock on Monday?
• Neutral Sentiment: Western Digital’s strong multi-year rally has prompted investors to assess whether earnings growth can continue to justify its valuation. The company’s latest reported results showed substantial year-over-year revenue and EPS growth, but expectations for AI-driven storage demand are already elevated. Western Digital Stock May Be Undervalued After Its Huge Three Year Run
• Negative Sentiment: Sector positioning is mixed: SanDisk declined while most memory stocks advanced, a divergence that may signal profit-taking or caution after large gains. Although not specific to WDC, it highlights the risk that elevated AI-storage expectations could lead to volatility. SanDisk Falls Despite Memory Rally

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on WDC shares. Mizuho set a $590.00 target price on Western Digital in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Barclays raised their price target on Western Digital from $450.00 to $620.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Summit Insights lowered shares of Western Digital from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Fox Advisors downgraded shares of Western Digital from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Western Digital from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $534.56.

Western Digital Stock Up 1.5%

The company's 50 day simple moving average is $479.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $458.36. The company has a market capitalization of $154.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 2.13.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The data storage provider reported $3.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.31 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $3.75 billion for 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%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 43.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.66 earnings per share. Western Digital has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 3.850-4.150 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Western Digital Corporation will post 19.65 EPS for the current year.

Western Digital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.1%. Western Digital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 2.48%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Cynthia Tregillis sold 432 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $451.20, for a total transaction of $194,918.40. Following the sale, the insider owned 111,030 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,096,736. The trade was a 0.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Irving Tan sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $444.97, for a total transaction of $8,899,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 575,966 shares in the company, valued at approximately $256,287,591.02. This trade represents a 3.36% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 25,437 shares of company stock valued at $11,461,345. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. ABS Direct Equity Fund LLC grew its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 112.8% during the second quarter. ABS Direct Equity Fund LLC now owns 1,277 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $816,000 after buying an additional 677 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in Western Digital by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 17,263 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $11,026,000 after acquiring an additional 579 shares during the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its position in Western Digital by 480.4% during the 2nd quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 296 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $189,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares during the period. Archford Capital Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in Western Digital during the 2nd quarter valued at about $384,000. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Western Digital by 1.3% in the second quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 24,252 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $15,490,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.51% of the company's stock.

About Western Digital

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.

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