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Why Western Digital (WDC) Dipped More Than Broader Market Today

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Western Digital (WDC - Free Report) ended the recent trading session at $166.26, demonstrating a -4.76% change from the preceding day's closing price. The stock trailed the S&P 500, which registered a daily loss of 1.16%. On the other hand, the Dow registered a loss of 0.47%, and the technology-centric Nasdaq decreased by 1.81%.

Shares of the maker of hard drives for businesses and personal computers witnessed a gain of 14.21% over the previous month, beating the performance of the Computer and Technology sector with its gain of 1%, and the S&P 500's gain of 1.03%.

The investment community will be paying close attention to the earnings performance of Western Digital in its upcoming release. The company's upcoming EPS is projected at $1.92, signifying a 8.47% increase compared to the same quarter of the previous year. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $2.91 billion, down 32% from the year-ago period.

Looking at the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $7.63 per share and revenue of $11.67 billion. These totals would mark changes of +54.77% and -12.14%, respectively, from last year.

Additionally, investors should keep an eye on any recent revisions to analyst forecasts for Western Digital. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the business outlook.

Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-term stock moves. To exploit this, we've formed the Zacks Rank, a quantitative model that includes these estimate changes and presents a viable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, stretching from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has a noteworthy track record of outperforming, validated by third-party audits, with stocks rated #1 producing an average annual return of +25% since the year 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has witnessed an unchanged state. At present, Western Digital boasts a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Looking at valuation, Western Digital is presently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 22.89. This indicates a premium in contrast to its industry's Forward P/E of 15.65.

Meanwhile, WDC's PEG ratio is currently 1.01. The PEG ratio bears resemblance to the frequently used P/E ratio, but this parameter also includes the company's expected earnings growth trajectory. The Computer- Storage Devices was holding an average PEG ratio of 2.01 at yesterday's closing price.

The Computer- Storage Devices industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. With its current Zacks Industry Rank of 18, this industry ranks in the top 8% of all industries, numbering over 250.

The Zacks Industry Rank assesses the vigor of our specific industry groups by computing the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks incorporated in the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Be sure to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and many more, on Zacks.com.


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