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California-headquartered Western Digital Corporation (WDC), with a market cap of $23.5 billion, is a leading U.S. producer of hard disk drives (HDDs), solid-state drives (SSDs), and flash memory. It expanded into flash drive storage technology through the acquisition of SanDisk in 2016.
Shares of the storage solution specialist have significantly outperformed the broader market over the past year, surging 93.5% compared to the S&P 500 Index’s ($SPX) 27% gain. In 2024, the stock continues to outshine the market with a remarkable 41.6% return YTD compared to SPX's 11.6% gain over the same time frame.
Narrowing the focus, WDC has also surpassed the Information Technology ETF Vanguard (VGT), which has gained 34.1% over the past year.
Western Digital has outpaced the broader indexes over the past year due to its strategic positioning amid high demand for memory chips.
For the current fiscal year, ending in June, analysts expect WDC’s loss per share to narrow 61.6% year over year to $1.68. Moreover, the company’s earnings surprise history is solid. It surpassed the consensus estimates in each of the last four quarters.
Western Digital has a consensus “Strong Buy” rating overall, compared to a "Moderate Buy" rating two months ago. Of the 21 analysts covering the stock, 17 advise a “Strong Buy,” and four recommend a “Hold.”
This configuration is more bullish than two months before, with 10 analysts advising “Strong Buy” ratings.
On May 14, Citigroup Inc. (C) issued a "Buy" rating on Western Digital with a target price of $90, citing anticipated growth in the storage market.
The mean price target of $87.33 represents a 21.1% premium to WDC’s current price levels. Moreover, the Street-high target of $115 suggests a significant upside potential of 59.5%.
On the date of publication, Kritika Sarmah did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
