Peter HofstraWestern DigitalWDCPAST TOP PICKMay 27, 2009

Yes, shares have rallied 47% this year, but shares were also cut in half compared to 2021. Memory has been a difficult in the semis space. WDC isn't pure quality, and momentum is positive long-term.

He just bought it after watching it for a while. He also owns Micron which is making new highs today. WDC termindated a merger earlier this year, but they spun off Sandisk which has done well. Also, WDC had been and will restructure their debt. Good. With rates coming down, this sets up WDC to perform well in the future.

China is building out its own technology hardware industry. China was the biggest net importer relative to their needs and will now displace US market share. This is a trade that you buy when it is weak. Don't add fresh money. He would prefer TSM-N.

He owned Western Digital a few years ago. He still follows it, but finds there are other players, like Juniper or Cisco, who are better investments today.

He has been cautious on tech generally as there has been so much money going into the sector. The valuation is still cheap, but getting towards higher levels and recent earnings did not prove up these metrics. He would look to add to his position on this pullback.

He is somewhat positive on this. Taking the earnings into account with its balance sheet, it is positive. His model price is $144.66, a 71% upside. This is cyclical, so you do get a substantial discount from value. It looks like it wants to hold here. If it were to break here, the support level is $65.

A hardware company focusing on memory. Just completed a takeover of their competition Sandisk in May, so they are a sort of the “go to” company now. They have a great customer base including Alphabet, Apple, Walmart. As we use the Cloud more and more, this company is a great beneficiary. Dividend yield of 2.89%. (Analysts’ price target is $77.96.)

Recently acquired SanDisk. There are a lot of concerns around the information technology semiconductors. Not one of her favourites, both in valuation and questionable earnings growth.