New York, January 20, 2026, 12:49 PM EST — Regular session
- Shares of Western Digital climbed roughly 2% midday, boosted by several brokerages raising their price targets
- Rosenblatt spots rising hard drive prices and strong demand; BofA expects results near the upper range of guidance
- Attention turns to Western Digital’s quarterly report on Jan. 29, with a close eye on how management views pricing and capacity.
Western Digital Corp (WDC.O) climbed roughly 2% to $226 in midday trading Tuesday, buoyed by a wave of Wall Street upgrades. Analysts pointed to stronger pricing and robust data-center demand as the key drivers behind the higher price targets for the hard-drive maker.
The gain was notable amid a broadly weaker market, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq slipping over 1% as investors absorbed new U.S. tariff threats. “We think we’ll settle down and realize this is just a negotiation tool,” said Jeff Buchbinder, chief equity strategist at LPL Financial. (Reuters)
Investors are weighing whether the storage upcycle still has legs. Western Digital’s quarterly results, due next week, have turned the stock into a quick barometer for hard drive pricing, capacity trends, and cloud demand.
Rosenblatt’s Kevin Cassidy bumped his price target for Western Digital to $270 from $165, maintaining a Buy rating. He highlighted rising prices and strong demand for hard drives, noting the company’s build-to-order model provides “good visibility” by avoiding excess inventory. Cassidy also flagged potential gains from HAMR—heat-assisted magnetic recording—which boosts data capacity on drives. (TipRanks)
Bank of America bumped its target up to $257 from $197 and kept a Buy rating in place. The firm predicts revenue, margins, and EPS will hit the high end of the company’s guidance range. (TipRanks)
Citi analyst Asiya Merchant raised her 2026 price target for technology hardware to $280, up from $200. She noted that spending by “hyperscalers” — the largest cloud operators — “remains robust,” driving demand not only for storage but also for power and networking equipment. (TipRanks)
UBS lifted its price target to $230 from $145. The firm anticipates the December quarter will roughly meet guidance, with the March quarter edging just above consensus. However, it flagged limited near-term revenue upside due to constrained drive capacity. UBS also noted Western Digital might showcase a capacity book that remains full through 2027. (TipRanks)
Among other storage and memory stocks, Sandisk climbed roughly 7.5%, Micron edged up around 0.5%, while Seagate dipped about 0.2%.
Western Digital spun off its flash memory segment, linked to Sandisk, narrowing its focus primarily to hard disk drive demand. (SEC)
Western Digital projects revenue near $2.9 billion for the upcoming quarter, with a margin of error of $100 million. Adjusted EPS is expected around $1.88, give or take 15 cents. (Reuters)
But the setup works both ways. Morgan Stanley has grown cautious on North American IT hardware, flagging slower demand as enterprises tighten spending amid rising component costs — a mix that could squeeze storage budgets if prices hold firm. (Reuters)
Western Digital will report earnings after the market closes on Jan. 29 and hold a conference call at 4:30 p.m. ET. Investors want clarity on 2026 pricing, capacity plans, and updates on next-gen drives like HAMR. (Westerndigital)
