Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) Issues Q2 2027 Earnings Guidance

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) updated its second quarter 2027 earnings guidance on Friday. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of 5.600-6.000 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 4.720. The company issued revenue guidance of $5.0 billion-$5.2 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $4.5 billion.

Western Digital Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of WDC traded down $0.58 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $353.61. 8,128,952 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,664,104. Western Digital has a fifty-two week low of $121.85 and a fifty-two week high of $799.87. The business’s 50 day moving average is $435.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $480.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $132.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 2.11.

Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The data storage provider reported $4.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.11 by $0.53. The business had revenue of $4.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.14 billion. Western Digital had a net margin of 72.95% and a return on equity of 48.15%. The business’s revenue was up 55.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.78 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Western Digital will post 19.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Western Digital Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 4th will be given a dividend of $0.1750 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 yield of 0.2%. Western Digital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 2.48%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their price objective on Western Digital from $660.00 to $700.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Susquehanna set a $405.00 price target on Western Digital in a report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Western Digital from $650.00 to $715.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Western Digital in a report on Friday. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities decreased their price target on shares of Western Digital from $800.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Western Digital has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $589.37.

Insider Buying and Selling at Western Digital

In related news, insider Cynthia L. Tregillis sold 1,007 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $478.36, for a total value of $481,708.52. Following the sale, the insider owned 112,155 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,650,465.80. This trade represents a 0.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Vidyadhara K. Gubbi sold 1,795 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $459.87, for a total value of $825,466.65. Following the transaction, the insider owned 80,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,052,185.77. This represents a 2.18% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 25,436 shares of company stock worth $11,340,064 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Western Digital News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Western Digital reported fiscal Q1 2027 adjusted earnings of $4.64 per share and revenue of $4.38 billion, beating estimates of approximately $4.09–$4.11 EPS and $4.14 billion in revenue. Sales increased 55.5% year over year, supported by cloud demand, higher-capacity drives and improved pricing. Western Digital Q1 earnings and dividend article
• Positive Sentiment: Management issued substantially stronger fiscal Q2 guidance, calling for revenue of $5.0 billion to $5.2 billion and adjusted EPS of $5.60 to $6.00, well above consensus estimates. Gross margins are expected to approach 60% as pricing and product mix remain favorable. Western Digital second-quarter outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Western Digital generated approximately $1.38 billion in free cash flow during Q1 and increased its quarterly dividend by 16.7% to $0.175 per share. Management also cited durable storage demand from AI infrastructure, inference and robotics, with major customers planning capacity years ahead. Western Digital revenue and cash flow report
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts broadly maintained constructive ratings, but several reduced price targets after earnings. TD Cowen lowered its target to $430 while retaining a Buy rating; Rosenblatt and Cantor Fitzgerald also cut targets but remained positive. The revisions suggest confidence in the business remains, though expectations and valuation are being reset.
• Negative Sentiment: The strong results were not enough to overcome concerns about rising capital expenditures, potential HDD supply increases, inventory levels and the eventual slowdown of pricing growth. Investors are also questioning whether AI-related demand and hyperscaler spending can remain at current levels.
• Negative Sentiment: Western Digital’s stock has decreased amid a wider technology and AI-stock sell-off, encouraging profit-taking after a substantial longer-term rally. A disclosed insider sale of 807 shares was conducted under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan and was modest relative to the insider’s remaining holdings, but added a minor sentiment overhang. SEC insider sale filing

About Western Digital

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: WDC) is a data storage technology company that develops and manufactures hard disk drives (HDDs) and related storage solutions. Its products are used in data centers, cloud infrastructure, enterprise systems, personal computers, gaming platforms and external storage devices.

The company offers HDD-based products for business and consumer applications, including high-capacity drives designed for hyperscale and cloud data centers, enterprise storage environments, network-attached storage systems and personal computing.