Western Digital Expected to Announce Decreased Q1 Earnings; Top Analysts Adjust Predictions Before Earnings Call
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Oct 30 2025
0mins
Should l Buy WDC?
Source: Benzinga
Earnings Release: Western Digital Corporation is set to announce its first-quarter earnings on October 30, with analysts predicting earnings of $1.58 per share and revenue of $2.73 billion, a decline from the previous year.
Stock Performance: Following a positive fourth-quarter report, Western Digital shares rose by 13.2%, closing at $141.38.
Analyst Ratings: Several analysts have maintained or upgraded their ratings for Western Digital, with price targets ranging from $135 to $160, reflecting confidence in the company's performance.
Investment Insights: Benzinga provides access to the latest analyst ratings and insights for investors considering Western Digital stock.
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Analyst Views on WDC
Wall Street analysts forecast WDC stock price to fall
19 Analyst Rating
15 Buy
4 Hold
0 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 463.910
Low
135.00
Averages
189.74
High
250.00
Current: 463.910
Low
135.00
Averages
189.74
High
250.00
About WDC
Western Digital Corporation is a developer, manufacturer and provider of data storage devices and solutions on hard disk drives (HDD) technologies. The Company manufactures, markets, and sells data storage devices and solutions through its sales personnel, dealers, distributors, retailers, and subsidiaries. Its portfolio of technology and products addresses end markets: Cloud, Client, and Consumer. Cloud is comprised primarily of products for public or private cloud environments and enterprise customers. Through the Client end market, the Company provides its original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and channel customers with a broad array of high-performance HDD solutions across desktops and notebooks. The Consumer end market offers a range of retail and other end-user products. Its product portfolio includes Internal HDD, Data Center Drives, Data Center Platforms, External Drives, Portable Drives, network-attached storage (NAS) for Home and Office, and Accessories.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
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- Significant Revenue Growth: Western Digital's fiscal Q3 2026 revenue surged 45% year-over-year to $3.34 billion, exceeding Wall Street expectations, driven by robust demand from AI data centers, which further solidifies the company's market position.
- Enhanced Profitability: Adjusted earnings per share increased by 97% to $2.72, primarily benefiting from the cloud segment's 89% revenue contribution and rising prices of high-capacity hard drives, which are expected to continue driving profit growth.
- Negotiation Power: The shortage of hard drives has positioned Western Digital favorably in negotiations with customers, with a 9% year-over-year price increase last quarter, and new long-term supply agreements are set to further support price trends, ensuring future profitability.
- Optimistic Market Outlook: The AI and cloud storage market is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of over 25% through 2030, with Western Digital's customers placing orders a year in advance, indicating strong demand for storage products and signaling the company's future growth potential.
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- Strong Company Performance: Micron Technology's stock surged nearly 38% in the past week, marking its best weekly performance since 2008, while the Roundhill Memory ETF gained over 30%, reflecting strong market demand for memory chips.
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- Cloud Business Dominance: A remarkable 89% of the company's revenue is derived from its cloud segment, primarily serving hyperscalers, which has substantially boosted profitability, particularly through higher-margin sales of high-capacity hard drives.
- Price Increase Trend: The ongoing shortage of hard drives has positioned Western Digital favorably in negotiations, reporting a 9% year-over-year price increase last quarter, with expectations for continued favorable pricing trends supported by new long-term supply agreements.
- Future Growth Potential: Western Digital anticipates that the AI and cloud storage market will grow at a compound annual growth rate exceeding 25% through 2030, with customers placing orders a year in advance to secure storage, indicating sustained profitability growth in the coming years.
See More
Western Digital Reports Strong Revenue Growth Driven by AI Demand
- Significant Revenue Growth: Western Digital's fiscal Q3 2026 revenue surged 45% year-over-year to $3.34 billion, exceeding Wall Street expectations, driven by robust demand from AI data centers, which further solidifies the company's market position.
- Enhanced Profitability: Adjusted earnings per share increased by 97% to $2.72, primarily benefiting from the cloud segment's 89% revenue contribution and rising prices of high-capacity hard drives, which are expected to continue driving profit growth.
- Negotiation Power: The shortage of hard drives has positioned Western Digital favorably in negotiations with customers, with a 9% year-over-year price increase last quarter, and new long-term supply agreements are set to further support price trends, ensuring future profitability.
- Optimistic Market Outlook: The AI and cloud storage market is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of over 25% through 2030, with Western Digital's customers placing orders a year in advance, indicating strong demand for storage products and signaling the company's future growth potential.
See More
Micron and Memory Stocks Surge Ahead of Monday Trading
- Micron Stock Surge: Micron (MU) shares soared 38% last week, marking its best weekly performance since December 2008, driven by strong demand for its 245TB Micron 6600 ION SSD, which is expected to push the company's market cap closer to $1 trillion.
- Memory Sector Recovery: With rising demand for AI and data centers, SanDisk and Western Digital saw their shares increase by 32% and 11% respectively, reflecting renewed investor confidence in the memory chip industry, particularly after positive earnings reports from major tech firms.
- Optimistic Market Sentiment: Retail investors exhibit extremely bullish sentiment towards Micron and other memory stocks, with many traders predicting Micron's stock price could reach $886, joining the trillion-dollar market cap club, indicating strong buying interest in memory stocks.
- Analyst Expectations Diverge: Despite the bullish retail sentiment, analysts have set an average price target of $556.05 for Micron, suggesting a 27% downside risk, which indicates a cautious outlook on future stock prices that may influence investor decisions.
See More
Roundhill Memory ETF DRAM Attracts Over $5 Billion in Investments
- Memory Supercycle: The Roundhill Memory ETF (DRAM) attracted over $5 billion in investments within a month, including $1.1 billion on Thursday alone, indicating strong market demand for memory stocks driven by surging AI computing needs.
- Core Holdings Performance: The ETF's core holdings feature leading memory manufacturers like SK Hynix, Micron, and Samsung, allowing investors to gain broad exposure to these high-growth companies, including those not listed on U.S. exchanges.
- Market Reaction: Micron's stock surged over 200 points in a week, climbing from $542 to $747, reflecting optimistic market expectations for memory product demand, with a price-to-earnings ratio of only 9 times projected earnings for the next 12 months, highlighting its appeal as a quality stock.
- Investment Opportunities: Despite waning interest in data center stocks, investors can still capitalize on potential gains in the memory and cooling sectors by purchasing instruments like the DRAM ETF, especially as major tech companies continue to invest heavily in data centers.
See More
Memory Chip Sector Enters Supercycle Amid AI Demand Surge
- Surging Demand: Analysts indicate that the surge in memory chip demand marks the beginning of a 'supercycle' in the industry, expected to last for years, particularly as the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence accelerates this trend.
- Strong Company Performance: Micron Technology's stock surged nearly 38% in the past week, marking its best weekly performance since 2008, while the Roundhill Memory ETF gained over 30%, reflecting strong market demand for memory chips.
- Samsung's Expansion Plans: Samsung Electronics is advancing the construction of its new mega-fab, P5 Fab 2, by six months to solidify its market dominance in the AI semiconductor sector, with construction expected to begin in July.
- Price Pressure: Due to memory shortages, analysts estimate that DRAM and NAND prices could rise by approximately 180% by mid-2026 compared to Q3 last year, which will pressure downstream companies but also reflect margin expansion for memory manufacturers, with Micron projected to achieve an 81% gross margin.
See More
U.S. Stocks Close Higher, Nasdaq Hits Record High
- Strong Market Performance: The S&P 500 rose by 0.84% and the Nasdaq 100 increased by 2.35%, reaching record highs, reflecting market optimism driven by robust corporate earnings despite concerns over the Iran conflict.
- Support from Employment Data: U.S. nonfarm payrolls for April increased by 115,000, surpassing expectations of 65,000, with March figures revised up to 185,000, indicating resilience in the labor market and further boosting stock prices.
- Decline in Consumer Confidence: The University of Michigan's May consumer sentiment index fell to a record low of 48.2, below the expected 49.5, highlighting economic uncertainty that could impact future consumer spending.
- Oil Market Volatility: Iran's seizure of an oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz led to a rise in WTI crude prices, with expectations that this incident will affect global oil supply, potentially causing further price fluctuations.
See More
Western Digital Stock Soars 170% in 2026 Amid AI Demand
- Strong Earnings Report: Western Digital's fiscal Q3 2026 revenue surged 45% year-over-year to $3.34 billion, with adjusted earnings per share soaring 97% to $2.72, significantly exceeding Wall Street expectations due to robust demand from AI data centers and favorable pricing.
- Cloud Business Dominance: A remarkable 89% of the company's revenue is derived from its cloud segment, primarily serving hyperscalers, which has substantially boosted profitability, particularly through higher-margin sales of high-capacity hard drives.
- Price Increase Trend: The ongoing shortage of hard drives has positioned Western Digital favorably in negotiations, reporting a 9% year-over-year price increase last quarter, with expectations for continued favorable pricing trends supported by new long-term supply agreements.
- Future Growth Potential: Western Digital anticipates that the AI and cloud storage market will grow at a compound annual growth rate exceeding 25% through 2030, with customers placing orders a year in advance to secure storage, indicating sustained profitability growth in the coming years.
See More
