Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Analyst consensus: 24 analysts give WDC a Moderate Buy (20 Buys, 4 Holds) with an average 1‑year price target of $307.46 and several recent target increases into the mid‑$300s (some sell‑side notes lift targets into the low $400s).
• Strong fundamentals but mixed risks: Western Digital beat the quarter (EPS $2.13 vs. $1.93 est.; revenue $3.02B, +25.2% YoY) and is benefiting from AI/data‑center storage demand and memory ETF inflows, though analysts caution that elevated leverage could limit financial flexibility.
• Insider selling: Company insiders have trimmed positions recently (CEO Irving Tan sold 20,000 shares; another insider sold 9,324), with 92,348 shares sold in the last 90 days and insiders now owning just 0.18% of the stock.

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-four research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $307.4583.

WDC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Susquehanna restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $285.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a report on Friday, February 6th. Argus set a $300.00 price target on Western Digital in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. UBS Group increased their price target on Western Digital from $285.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings raised Western Digital from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on Western Digital from $200.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Cynthia L. Tregillis sold 9,324 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.27, for a total transaction of $2,501,349.48. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 121,682 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $32,643,630.14. This trade represents a 7.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Irving Tan sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.44, for a total value of $5,108,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 623,586 shares of the company's stock, valued at $159,288,807.84. The trade was a 3.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 92,348 shares of company stock valued at $24,163,521. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Western Digital

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. First United Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the first quarter valued at approximately $103,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Western Digital by 9.2% during the first quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 357 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $97,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. SmartHarvest Portfolios LLC bought a new position in Western Digital during the first quarter valued at $239,000. Falcon Wealth Planning grew its holdings in Western Digital by 2.6% during the first quarter. Falcon Wealth Planning now owns 2,170 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $587,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Finally, Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Western Digital by 7.9% during the first quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,179 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $1,130,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares during the period. 92.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Western Digital Stock Up 2.6%

WDC stock opened at $383.81 on Wednesday. Western Digital has a twelve month low of $35.98 and a twelve month high of $389.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock's 50 day moving average is $297.35 and its 200-day moving average is $220.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $130.13 billion, a PE ratio of 38.50, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.77.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The data storage provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.93 by $0.20. Western Digital had a return on equity of 41.53% and a net margin of 35.52%.The company had revenue of $3.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.93 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.77 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 25.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Western Digital will post 8.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Digital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 5th were given a dividend of $0.125 per share. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 5th. Western Digital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.02%.

Key Headlines Impacting Western Digital

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and outlets highlight WDC as a beneficiary of AI-driven demand for data-center storage, supporting continued revenue and earnings momentum. These Red Hot Tech Stocks Sport Bullish Growth Outlooks
• Positive Sentiment: Heavy inflows into the first dedicated memory ETF (which includes WDC) have pushed it to $1B AUM in under two weeks, a sign of strong investor appetite for memory/storage names. SNDK, STX, MU, WDC rally powers first dedicated memory ETF to $1B AUM in under two weeks
• Positive Sentiment: Price-target raises from analysts (Evercore to $410, others up to $415) show improved sell-side confidence and create a near-term catalyst for further upside. The Fly
• Neutral Sentiment: Comparisons with peers (SanDisk) note WDC’s strength in HDDs vs. NAND specialists — useful context for investors deciding between exposure to HDD-driven near-term cash flow vs. NAND’s longer-term growth profile. SanDisk vs. Western Digital: Which Memory Storage Stock Is the Better Buy?
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks and other commentary point to favorable earnings‑estimate setups (Earnings ESP) for computer/tech names, meaning WDC could outperform near its next report but outcome-dependent. These Red Hot Tech Stocks Sport Bullish Growth Outlooks
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage flags that while cash flow has surged with AI demand, WDC’s elevated leverage raises questions about financial flexibility and how much debt could constrain capital allocation or M&A optionality. Can Western Digital's Strong Cash Flow Outweigh its Leverage Concerns?

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.

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