Western Digital (NASDAQ:WDC) may be all about data storage, but that’s more than enough for Morgan Stanley, who declared Western Digital its new Top Pick. That, in turn, sent shares of Western Digital spiking, up over 5% in Monday afternoon’s trading.
Morgan Stanley, when describing the reasons for the new Top Pick—the previous one was Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA), which shows you just how huge a change this was—noted that there’s more upside potential in Western Digital than there is in Nvidia, which has already had a phenomenal run-up over the last few months. In fact, Morgan Stanley hiked the price target on Western Digital accordingly, sending it up from $52 to $73. There’s not only more upside potential but more ways to achieve it. The market seems to be coming back for NAND flash memory, and that’s a big part of Western Digital’s product mix.
Skeptics Remain, However
There’s no denying what Morgan Stanley analysts had to say about Western Digital. But there are some darker clouds hanging over the field that should be considered as well. Some reports noted that a few of Western Digital’s key metrics—like its growth rates and financial strength—aren’t as positive as they were in the past. That, coupled with some unpleasant macroeconomic headwinds like a general retraction in consumer and corporate spending, might put a bit of a crimp in Western Digital’s hose.
Is SentinelOne a Buy, Sell, or Hold?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on WDC stock based on 12 Buys and four Holds assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 37.74% rally in its share price over the past year, the average WDC price target of $55.50 per share implies 3.85% downside risk.
