Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: WDC) is back in focus after Tuesday’s closing bell (Dec. 23, 2025), with the stock holding near the high-$170s in extended trading—an area that reflects both a powerful 2025 rally and a market still pricing in strong demand for data-center storage tied to AI workloads. Late Tuesday, WDC traded around $178 in after-hours activity, roughly in line with where it finished the regular session. [1]
The bigger story for the next session isn’t just the after-hours tape—it’s the calendar. Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025 (Christmas Eve) is a shortened U.S. trading day, with the NYSE and Nasdaq scheduled to close early at 1:00 p.m. ET, followed by a full market closure on Thursday, Dec. 25. That creates a setup where thin liquidity can exaggerate moves, especially in high-beta names like WDC. [2]
Below is what investors and traders should know before the Dec. 24 open, including the key narratives circulating today (Dec. 23) across market news, analyst commentary, and stock-forecast roundups.
After-hours recap: Where WDC stands after the bell on Dec. 23
- Price action: WDC ended the regular session around $178.25 and remained near that level in after-hours quotes. [3]
- The “why” (so far): There wasn’t a single dominant company-specific headline late Tuesday that clearly explains a sharp post-close move. Instead, the stock’s after-hours steadiness fits a familiar year-end pattern: investors digest recent catalysts (index inclusion, analyst target resets) while positioning cautiously into a holiday-shortened session.
This matters because on low-volume days, “nothing happening” after-hours can quickly become “everything happening” at the open—particularly if the broader market gaps or if a fresh analyst note hits premarket.
The major catalyst still echoing through WDC: Nasdaq-100 inclusion and index-flow effects
One of the most important near-term structural catalysts for Western Digital is still the Nasdaq-100 reconstitution.
- Nasdaq announced that Western Digital would be added to the Nasdaq-100 as part of the annual reconstitution, effective prior to the market open on Dec. 22, 2025. [4]
Why it still matters after the effective date:
- Index changes can create multi-day flow and rebalancing effects, not just a single close-to-open event. Some funds rebalance precisely at the effective moment, while others adjust around liquidity, tracking error, or internal rules.
- In a holiday week—with early closes and lower participation—those flows can look louder on the tape than they would in a normal volume environment.
“The Great Split”: Why Western Digital’s business story reads differently in late 2025
A key reason WDC’s narrative has changed (and why it’s showing up in more “AI infrastructure” conversations) is the company’s separation of its flash business.
- According to a Western Digital SEC filing, Western Digital completed the separation of its Flash business unit into a separate company, Sandisk Corporation, on Feb. 21, 2025, and Sandisk began trading as an independent public company under “SNDK”. [5]
The investment implication: many market participants now frame Western Digital more cleanly as a storage infrastructure play (especially HDD/nearline exposure), while Sandisk is evaluated on its own flash/SSD cycle.
Today’s (Dec. 23) WDC news and analysis themes investors are reading
Even without a single “breaking” corporate announcement, Western Digital featured prominently in today’s market commentary because it sits at the intersection of:
- the AI data-center buildout,
- the storage supply/demand cycle, and
- headline-grabbing 2025 stock performance.
1) WDC and the “AI storage winners” narrative
A widely circulated theme in market commentary today: data storage names have outperformed many of the more obvious AI trades.
- An Investing.com analysis published today highlighted 2025’s biggest winners and specifically pointed to Western Digital’s outsized year-to-date performance, tying the move to AI-era storage demand. [6]
2) Institutional ownership spotlights and “flow” headlines
Holiday weeks often bring lighter fundamental news and more “who bought what” coverage.
- A MarketBeat item published today focused on an institution disclosing a new position in WDC and recapped several recent analyst target changes cited in its coverage. [7]
Takeaway: these stories rarely change the long-term thesis by themselves, but they can shape short-term sentiment when liquidity is thin.
3) The “Nasdaq-100 entry” remains part of today’s roundup coverage
Today also saw continued coverage and recap-style articles around the Nasdaq-100 changes (including WDC’s addition), which keeps the stock in front of index/ETF-focused investors. [8]
The fundamentals investors keep coming back to: last reported results and guidance
The most recent earnings cycle remains central to the bull case: tight high-capacity storage conditions, hyperscaler demand, and improving profitability.
From Western Digital’s fiscal Q1 2026 results release (reported previously):
- Revenue:$2.82 billion, up 27% year over year
- Non-GAAP EPS:$1.78
- Outlook: the company indicated fiscal Q2 revenue expected to be up ~20% year over year at the midpoint [9]
Why this still matters heading into Dec. 24:
- In holiday trading, price can move on positioning and flows—but the support under the story is still the market’s belief that AI-related storage demand remains strong enough to sustain margins and pricing.
Analyst forecasts and price targets: what “the Street” looks like late Dec. 23
Analyst commentary today leaned less toward “initiation shock” and more toward target recalibration after a massive run.
A notable target move circulating today
- Investing.com reported that Benchmark raised its price target on Western Digital to $200 from $163 while maintaining a Buy rating (noted as a Tuesday action). [10]
Consensus targets: still bullish, but not unanimous on upside
Depending on the dataset, the “average” target can look meaningfully different (because platforms include different analyst universes and update times):
- One widely referenced summary shows an average target around the high-$180s, with a high-end estimate reaching $250. [11]
- Another consensus compilation shows an average target in the mid-$170s, implying more limited upside/downside from current levels. [12]
How to interpret that divergence before the next open:
- After a huge 2025 move, the market often shifts from “multiple expansion” to “prove it again next quarter.”
- Targets tend to cluster or lag during that transition, so near-term trading is more likely to respond to new information (guidance revisions, pricing datapoints, hyperscaler capex signals) than to older target hikes.
What to know before the market opens tomorrow: a practical Dec. 24 checklist for WDC traders
1) Know the session structure: early close changes the risk profile
On Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025, U.S. equities are scheduled for an early close at 1:00 p.m. ET, and markets are closed on Dec. 25. [13]
What that means in practice:
- Many desks reduce risk earlier than usual.
- Breakouts can fail faster.
- Stop runs can happen on relatively small orders.
2) Expect thinner liquidity—and consider execution tactics
With participation lower, pay attention to:
- Wider bid/ask spreads
- Faster air pockets (gaps between liquidity levels)
- The increased usefulness of limit orders versus market orders
This is especially relevant for WDC because it’s been trading like a high-momentum AI infrastructure proxy in 2025—names like that can whip around even when the headline flow is quiet.
3) Broader market context still matters
The broader tape into Christmas Eve has featured strong index levels and low volume—an environment where a few mega-cap moves can steer sentiment. [14]
For WDC specifically, watch:
- Nasdaq tone at the open (risk-on vs. risk-off)
- Any premarket read-through from semis, memory, and infrastructure names
4) Rebalancing and index positioning can linger longer than expected
Even after the Nasdaq-100 effective date, flows can spill over—particularly in a shortened week. Keep an eye on:
- Pre-market volume spikes
- Large prints near the open or into the midday close window
(If volume appears unusually high for Christmas Eve, it can be a clue that positioning is still getting cleaned up.)
5) The next true “fundamental reset” is the next earnings update
Multiple market calendars currently point to late January 2026 as the next earnings window, but specific dates can vary by source until confirmed by the company. [15]
If you’re trading the next session rather than investing:
- The key is not the exact earnings day yet—it’s whether any incremental pre-announcement, channel check, or pricing datapoint hits the tape in the meantime.
Bottom line for Dec. 24: what matters most for WDC at the open
Western Digital stock is heading into the Dec. 24 open with three forces in play:
- Structure: holiday-shortened session + reduced liquidity (potentially outsized swings). [16]
- Positioning: Nasdaq-100 inclusion remains a narrative and can still influence flows around rebalancing and tracking funds. [17]
- Story: investors continue to frame WDC as a core beneficiary of AI-era storage demand—supported by the company’s recent results and outlook commentary. [18]
If you want one actionable “before the bell” idea: treat the open like a liquidity event first and a fundamental event second—unless a genuinely new WDC headline breaks premarket.
This article is for informational purposes only and is not investment advice.
References
1. www.investing.com, 2. www.nyse.com, 3. www.investing.com, 4. www.stocktitan.net, 5. www.sec.gov, 6. www.investing.com, 7. www.marketbeat.com, 8. www.financialexpress.com, 9. www.westerndigital.com, 10. www.investing.com, 11. www.investing.com, 12. www.marketbeat.com, 13. www.nyse.com, 14. www.barrons.com, 15. www.investing.com, 16. www.nyse.com, 17. www.stocktitan.net, 18. www.westerndigital.com
