Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Stock Price Down 1.4% – Here’s What Happened

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC)’s share price was down 1.4% during mid-day trading on Friday. The stock traded as low as $258.61 and last traded at $263.78. 11,934,851 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 37% from the average daily volume of 8,707,566 shares. The stock had previously closed at $267.63.

Western Digital News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Storage and memory stocks recovered as investors reassessed fears that election-related policy changes would derail AI investment. Strategists say the AI buildout is still expected to continue, though potentially on a longer timeline. Western Digital Stock Rebounds as Wall Street Bets AI Storage Demand Outlasts Election Rout
• Positive Sentiment: Fundamental commentary highlights stronger pricing, demand for higher-capacity hard drives, and operational efficiencies as drivers of Western Digital’s gross-margin expansion. Zacks Research also upgraded the stock from “hold” to “strong-buy.” Western Digital’s Gross Margin Momentum: How Long Can It Last?
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains broadly supportive, with a reported consensus Buy rating and average price target near $589. However, one valuation estimate was recently reduced from $650.67 to $613.38, reflecting a reassessment of HDD strength, spending plans, and future supply. Nasdaq Suffers Worst AI Panic in Years as Nvidia, SanDisk, and Western Digital Sink Western Digital Stock Sees Fair Value Cut
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are concerned that proposed federal oversight, permitting restrictions, or caps on new data centers could slow AI infrastructure spending—an important source of expected storage demand. That concern drove a sharp selloff Thursday before the reported rebound. Why Are Western Digital Shares Falling on AI Data Center Policy Risk?

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $540.00 target price on shares of Western Digital in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Western Digital from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 31st. Susquehanna set a $405.00 price target on Western Digital in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Summit Insights cut Western Digital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Western Digital from $730.00 to $450.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $591.04.

Western Digital Trading Down 1.4%

The company has a market cap of $98.74 billion, a PE ratio of 10.24, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 2.27. The business has a fifty day moving average of $406.75 and a 200-day moving average of $418.97.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The data storage provider reported $4.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.11 by $0.53. Western Digital had a return on equity of 55.62% and a net margin of 69.20%. The firm had revenue of $4.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.78 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 55.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Western Digital Corporation will post 23.62 EPS for the current year.

Western Digital Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.1750 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 4th. This is a positive change from Western Digital’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Western Digital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 2.33%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Western Digital news, insider Vidyadhara Gubbi sold 1,795 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $459.87, for a total value of $825,466.65. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 80,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,052,185.77. The trade was a 2.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction 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 on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $444.97, for a total value of $8,899,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 575,966 shares in the company, valued at approximately $256,287,591.02. This represents a 3.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 25,436 shares of company stock valued at $11,340,064. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Western Digital

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WDC. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,602,927,000. ABS Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Western Digital during the second quarter valued at $1,226,342,000. Anther Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the second quarter valued at $901,601,000. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the second quarter valued at $885,565,000. Finally, Trivest Advisors Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Western Digital during the second quarter valued at $627,606,000. 92.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Western Digital Company Profile

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: WDC) develops and supplies hard disk drives (HDDs) and related data-storage products. Its drives serve data centers and cloud providers, as well as businesses and consumers who need storage for computers, network-attached storage systems, surveillance and other applications. Its product brands include WD and Ultrastar.

Founded in 1970, the company began as an electronics and semiconductor business before expanding into data storage. In February 2025, Western Digital completed the separation of its flash-memory business into the independently traded SanDisk Corporation, leaving Western Digital focused on HDDs.

Western Digital serves customers around the world.