Western Digital Corp (NASDAQ:WDC) shares are trading lower Tuesday along with other memory and storage stocks after reports that Seagate is competing with Toshiba to buy TDK’s hard-drive magnetic heads business.
- Western Digital shares are retreating from recent levels. Why are WDC shares down?
Western Digital Falls as Seagate and Toshiba Chase TDK’s Head Business
Bloomberg reported that Seagate Technology Holdings Plc (NASDAQ:STX) and Toshiba Tec (OTC:TSHTY) are vying for TDK’s business making magnetic heads for hard drives. A sale could be worth several billion dollars. TDK said it has yet to make a final call.
The business matters to the whole industry. TDK Corp (OTC:TTDKY) sells magnetic heads to all three major hard drive makers: Seagate, Western Digital and Toshiba. The winner would own a key supplier to its rivals. Investors may worry that a completed deal would mean tougher competition and thinner margins for Western Digital. The contest also stretches the AI storage boom into a fight over the supply chain.
Toshiba’s Capacity Push Already Rattled Western Digital Stock
Last week brought a different jolt. Toshiba said it plans to spend about $380 million at its Philippine operations to roughly double its hard drive output for AI data centers by fiscal 2027. Reports say the company aims to grow its share of the market, measured by storage capacity, from a little over 10% toward 30% over time.
Shares of Western Digital and Seagate each dropped about 10% on Friday as traders feared the extra supply would erode the scarcity that has powered the stocks’ big 2026 gains.
Western Digital is responding with bigger drives, and its 40TB UltraSMR drive is now in customer qualification. The company says its roadmap for heat-assisted magnetic recording, known as HAMR, is built to reach 100TB and beyond.
Both developments raise one question for investors: who will keep the profits from AI storage demand as supply grows. The TDK fight may show which company is most determined to control the next stage of the boom.
WDC Shares Are Falling
WDC Price Action: Western Digital shares were down 6.78% at $411.69 at the time of publication on Tuesday, according to Benzinga Pro.
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