Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Stock Falls 2.1% – Here’s What Happened

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) dropped 2.1% during trading on Thursday. The company traded as low as $336.00 and last traded at $356.45. 12,161,706 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 41% from the average session volume of 8,652,859 shares. The stock had previously closed at $364.10.

Western Digital News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Western Digital’s bullish case remains tied to strong AI infrastructure demand, with the company having exceeded earnings expectations in five consecutive quarters. One Wall Street analyst cited the potential for a substantial rebound after the stock’s recent decline. Western Digital Lost One Third Its Value Over 3 Months
• Positive Sentiment: Recent financial results provide support for the long-term thesis: Western Digital’s latest reported quarter beat consensus estimates for earnings and revenue, while revenue grew sharply year over year. The company also issued positive forward earnings guidance.
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are awaiting Western Digital’s next quarterly earnings report, which could clarify demand trends, pricing, margins and the effect of new competition. Analyst commentary is mixed, with one analysis favoring Seagate over Western Digital while another argues that Western Digital remains attractive relative to peers. Seagate Is the Better Trade
• Negative Sentiment: Chinese memory maker ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) is reportedly targeting server memory with a denser chip design. Because server memory is among the industry’s most profitable segments, investors fear increased supply and pricing pressure could weaken the earnings outlook for Western Digital and other AI-related memory stocks. Memory Stocks Extend Selloff on China Competition Fears
• Negative Sentiment: Additional commentary warns that Western Digital may be nearing a cyclical top, raising concerns that strong fundamentals and AI enthusiasm are already reflected in expectations. A broader selloff in the AI trade and technology sector is adding to the pressure. Western Digital: The Fundamentals of a Cycle Top

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Western Digital from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $676.00 target price (up from $650.00) on shares of Western Digital in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their target price on shares of Western Digital from $660.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on shares of Western Digital from $590.00 to $770.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities decreased their price target on shares of Western Digital from $900.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $618.63.

Western Digital Stock Down 2.1%

The company has a market capitalization of $133.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.72, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 2.11. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $446.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $477.28.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last announced its 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 analyst estimates of $3.70 billion. Western Digital had a net margin of 72.95% and a return on equity of 48.15%. Western Digital’s revenue was up 43.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.66 earnings per share. Western Digital has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 3.850-4.150 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Western Digital Corporation will post 19.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Western Digital Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 8th were paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 8th. Western Digital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 2.48%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Vidyadhara Gubbi sold 1,795 shares of Western Digital stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $459.87, for a total transaction of $825,466.65. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 80,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,052,185.77. This trade represents a 2.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Irving Tan sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $444.97, for a total value of $8,899,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 575,966 shares in the company, valued at $256,287,591.02. This represents a 3.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 25,437 shares of company stock valued at $11,461,345 over the last three months. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Western Digital in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Dunhill Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Western Digital during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the second quarter worth $31,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. bought a new stake in Western Digital in the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Gables Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Western Digital in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. 92.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Western Digital Company Profile

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: WDC) develops, manufactures and supplies data-storage products and solutions. The company’s portfolio is centered on hard disk drives (HDDs) used in cloud and enterprise data centers, personal computers, network-attached storage systems and other applications that require high-capacity data storage.

Western Digital markets products under brands including Western Digital, WD and Ultrastar. Its offerings include enterprise and data-center HDDs, storage products for business and consumer systems, and related technologies designed to help organizations store, manage and access large volumes of data.

Founded in 1970, Western Digital has evolved from a maker of electronic components into a global data-storage company.