Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Citigroup Analyst Says

Key Points

• Citigroup has raised its target price for Western Digital from $88.00 to $110.00, indicating a potential upside of 18.86% from its previous close, and maintains a "buy" rating on the stock.
• Western Digital reported earnings of $1.66 per share for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' estimates, with revenues of $2.61 billion, marking a 30% year-over-year increase.
• The company has authorized a $2.00 billion stock repurchase plan, allowing it to buy back up to 11.7% of its shares, a sign that management believes the stock is undervalued.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) had its target price hoisted by analysts at Citigroup from $88.00 to $110.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "buy" rating on the data storage provider's stock. Citigroup's price target would suggest a potential upside of 18.86% from the company's previous close.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Wedbush raised their price target on shares of Western Digital from $78.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $45.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $92.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. BNP Paribas reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $70.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $80.50.

Western Digital Price Performance

Western Digital stock traded up $0.51 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $92.55. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,195,933 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,900,122. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $73.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $55.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a market capitalization of $32.29 billion, a PE ratio of 17.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.69. Western Digital has a 12 month low of $28.83 and a 12 month high of $93.50.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The data storage provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.45 billion. Western Digital had a return on equity of 24.93% and a net margin of 14.13%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 30.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.44 EPS. Western Digital has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.540-1.690 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Western Digital will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Western Digital announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, May 13th that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the data storage provider to repurchase up to 11.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Western Digital

In other news, insider Vidyadhara K. Gubbi sold 11,343 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.29, for a total value of $1,024,159.47. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 151,596 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,687,602.84. This trade represents a 6.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Irving Tan sold 8,621 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.90, for a total value of $654,333.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 594,836 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $45,148,052.40. This trade represents a 1.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 49,975 shares of company stock valued at $3,935,806. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Western Digital

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WDC. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Western Digital by 52.9% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 28,838 shares of the data storage provider's stock valued at $1,166,000 after acquiring an additional 9,974 shares in the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP bought a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,406,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Western Digital by 5.1% during the 1st quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 144,307 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $5,834,000 after purchasing an additional 6,947 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its stake in shares of Western Digital by 6.8% during the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 89,244 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $3,608,000 after purchasing an additional 5,711 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Western Digital by 8.0% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,933,278 shares of the data storage provider's stock worth $118,574,000 after purchasing an additional 216,387 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.51% of the company's stock.

Western Digital Company Profile

Western Digital Corporation develops, manufactures, and sells data storage devices and solutions in the United States, China, Hong Kong, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, rest of Asia, and internationally. It offers client devices, including hard disk drives (HDDs) and solid state drives (SSDs) for desktop and notebook personal computers (PCs), gaming consoles, and set top boxes; and flash-based embedded storage products for mobile phones, tablets, notebook PCs, and other portable and wearable devices, as well as automotive, Internet of Things, industrial, and connected home applications.

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