Western Digital (WDC) shares dropped 7.03% on July 1. The decline mirrored a broader sell-off across the semiconductor and technology sectors.
Investors sold shares to lock in profits following a significant first-half rally fueled by AI storage demand. Macroeconomic pressures and a rotation away from high-performing tech stocks accelerated the downturn.
A new antitrust class-action lawsuit against major memory chip manufacturers further dampened investor sentiment. The legal action alleges industry-wide supply manipulation and price-fixing.
Bank of America raised its price target for Western Digital despite the decline. High market expectations left the stock vulnerable to profit-taking regardless of the positive analyst update.