Shares of Western Digital Corp. surged 14.2% Thursday after the disk-drive maker told investors that it would beat sales and profit forecasts in the March quarter on higher-than-expected prices for its desktop hard drives.
The Lake Forest-based company said it now expects sales of $900 million to $915 million in the period, up from an earlier estimate of $885 million to $915 million. And Western Digital said it would post net income of $60.5 million to $64.6 million, nearly double an earlier estimate.
“Overall industry demand for hard drives in the traditional computing markets during the March quarter has been seasonal as expected but consumer demand trends have been better than anticipated,” said Matt Massengill, Western Digital’s chairman and chief executive.
Despite the improved outlook, Western Digital said it was “premature” to comment on June quarter estimates. The company released its earnings guidance after the close of trading Wednesday.
Shares of Western Digital closed at $12.8 Thursday.
