Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Shares Up 8.3% - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Western Digital shares jumped 8.3% in mid-day trading, with the stock reaching as high as $536.12 amid heavier interest in the name. The move came as investors rotated into memory and storage stocks tied to AI infrastructure.
• Recent earnings were strong, with Western Digital beating expectations on both EPS and revenue. The company also reported 45.5% year-over-year revenue growth and gave Q4 2026 EPS guidance of $3.10 to $3.40.
• Analyst sentiment remains constructive, with several firms maintaining or upgrading bullish ratings and the consensus sitting at “Moderate Buy.” The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.15 per share, though insider selling was recently reported.

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report)'s stock price shot up 8.3% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $536.12 and last traded at $524.65. 7,502,975 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 17% from the average session volume of 9,031,896 shares. The stock had previously closed at $484.28.

Western Digital News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Western Digital is benefiting from a sector-wide surge in memory and storage stocks after UBS delivered a notably bullish call on Micron, prompting investors to reprice AI-linked storage names higher. Not Just Micron: Memory Melt-Up Pulls SanDisk Up 8%, Western Digital Up 10%
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage has highlighted Western Digital as one of the best-performing data center stocks in 2026, helped by its role in AI infrastructure and a recent announcement integrating post-quantum cryptography into its Ultrastar UltraSMR drives. Is Western Digital (WDC) the Best Performing Data Center Stocks So Far in 2026?
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst and brokerage commentary continues to support a constructive long-term view on Western Digital, though the coverage is largely opinion-based and not a direct new business catalyst. Brokers Suggest Investing in Western Digital (WDC): Read This Before Placing a Bet
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider selling was reported recently, but the dollar amount was relatively small and does not appear to be driving today’s trading. Insider Selling: Western Digital NASDAQ: WDC Insider Sells $48,640.22 in Stock

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on WDC shares. Wall Street Zen raised Western Digital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $325.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Argus set a $300.00 target price on Western Digital in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $575.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Truist Financial set a $310.00 target price on Western Digital in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $406.42.

Western Digital Stock Up 8.3%

The stock has a market capitalization of $180.84 billion, a PE ratio of 31.32 and a beta of 2.10. The company has a 50-day moving average of $377.48 and a 200 day moving average of $271.52.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The data storage provider reported $2.72 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.39 by $0.33. The firm had revenue of $3.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.25 billion. Western Digital had a return on equity of 42.95% and a net margin of 55.29%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 45.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.36 earnings per share. Western Digital has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.100-3.400 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Western Digital Corporation will post 9.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Digital Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. This is an increase from Western Digital's previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. Western Digital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 2.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Digital

In other Western Digital news, insider Vidyadhara K. Gubbi sold 4,674 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $443.19, for a total value of $2,071,470.06. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 90,041 shares in the company, valued at $39,905,270.79. This represents a 4.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Irving Tan sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.84, for a total value of $8,236,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 598,150 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $246,342,096. The trade was a 3.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 53,347 shares of company stock worth $17,974,293 in the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Digital

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Glenmede Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in shares of Western Digital by 6.4% in the 1st quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 6,613 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $1,789,000 after purchasing an additional 399 shares during the last quarter. Summitry LLC acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 1st quarter valued at $231,000. Groupama Asset Managment lifted its stake in shares of Western Digital by 241.8% in the 1st quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 9,595 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $2,595,000 after purchasing an additional 6,788 shares during the last quarter. BankChampaign National Association acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 1st quarter valued at $2,128,000. Finally, January Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 1st quarter valued at $241,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.51% of the company's stock.

About Western Digital

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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