Key Takeaways Western Digital's non-GAAP gross margin rose to 39.4% in fiscal 2025, with operating income up 578%.Spinning off SanDisk and rising nearline demand boosted margins, cash flow and financial strength.WDC guides Q1 revenue of $2.7B, gross margin of 41-42% and EPS of $1.54 at midpoint.Western Digital Corporation (WDC) has surprised investors with a strong turnaround in profitability over the past year. After struggling through the memory downturn and heavy losses in fiscal 2024, the company has bo ...

Key Takeaways NetApp expects Q1 EPS of $1.48-$1.58 and sales of $1.455B-$1.605B.All-flash and cloud growth now contribute over two-thirds of revenue.Public Cloud revenue is projected at $173M, up 8.9% year over year.NetApp, Inc. ((NTAP) is slated to release first-quarter fiscal 2026 earnings on Aug. 27, after the closing bell.The company expects non-GAAP earnings per share to be between $1.48 and $1.58 for the quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate is currently pegged at $1.54 per share, representing a 1.3% ...

Industry Overview - The Zacks Computer-Storage Devices industry is expected to experience robust growth due to factors such as digital transformation, edge computing, AI workloads, and enterprise cloud adoption [1] - The increasing demand for secure storage solutions driven by rising cyberattacks will further enhance the need for sophisticated data storage [1] - Major players in the industry include Western Digital Corporation (WDC), NetApp, Inc. (NTAP), and Teradata Corporation (TDC) [1] Trends Impacting the Industry - The rapid proliferation of AI is reshaping the tech landscape, leading to increased demand for high-speed, high-capacity, and low-latency storage solutions [3] - Traditional storage architectures are being replaced by NVMe-based SSDs and software-defined storage to meet the data throughput required by AI applications [3] - Cloud storage technologies are evolving, with companies leveraging AI and machine learning to optimize storage solutions and manage increasing data complexity [4] Market Conditions - Worldwide IT spending is projected to reach $5.61 trillion in 2025, reflecting a 9.8% increase from 2024, with the Devices segment expected to grow by 10.4% [5] - Despite positive IT spending forecasts, escalating trade tensions and macroeconomic uncertainties pose challenges to the industry [5] - The Zacks Computer-Storage Devices industry has underperformed the S&P 500, declining 32.4% over the past year compared to the S&P 500's gain of 9.7% [10] Company Highlights - **Western Digital (WDC)**: Focused on cloud end-markets, WDC is addressing supply chain challenges and expects strong data center demand to drive sales. The company has secured long-term deals through mid-2026 [17][18] - **Teradata (TDC)**: TDC's innovations in AI and hybrid cloud are gaining traction, with partnerships with major cloud service providers enhancing its offerings. The company has launched the Enterprise Vector Store to support AI applications [21][22] - **NetApp (NTAP)**: NTAP is experiencing increased demand for its all-flash arrays and expects to capture more market share. The company reported five-fold year-over-year growth in its AI business for the fiscal fourth quarter of 2025 [27][29]

Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - Q1 revenue slightly exceeded forecasts, totaling $625 million, a 1% year-over-year decline [20] - Total ARR was $2.552 billion, down 20 basis points year-over-year, flat on a constant currency basis [21] - Net income for Q1 was $207 million, up 5% year-over-year, with diluted EPS of $0.70, a 21% increase from the previous year [24] - Gross margin was 82.9%, down 170 basis points year-over-year, while operating margin was 41.7%, exceeding guidance [23] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - The FormSwift business faced a 70 basis point headwind to revenue, contributing to the overall decline [20] - The document workflow business, DocsZen, delivered solid double-digit growth year-over-year, while Sign faced competitive challenges [15] - The core FSS business saw improved performance among self-serve teams despite reduced investment levels [12] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - The company exited Q1 with 18.16 million paying users, a sequential decline of approximately 60,000 users [21] - Average revenue per paying user (ARPU) decreased to $139.26 from $140.06 in the prior quarter [21] Company Strategy and Development Direction - The company is focused on scaling Dash and simplifying its core FSS business, with significant updates to Dash enhancing search capabilities across various media formats [6][7] - Strategic investments are being made to improve the user experience and drive higher operating efficiency, with a goal of increasing operating margins and free cash flow [19][32] - The company plans to introduce a self-serve version of Dash to unlock potential within its self-serve customer base [58] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management acknowledged a fluid macroeconomic landscape but expressed confidence in the subscription business and broad customer diversification [17][29] - The company expects paying users to decline by approximately 1.5% or 300,000 users throughout the year, with FormSwift representing about half of this decline [30] - Despite facing uncertainties, management remains optimistic about the potential of Dash and its ability to navigate current market conditions [32] Other Important Information - The company repurchased approximately 18 million shares, spending about $500 million, with $870 million remaining under the share repurchase authorization [27] - The company raised its full-year guidance for reported revenue by $10 million, now expecting $2.475 billion to $2.490 billion [28] Q&A Session Summary Question: What is supporting better user levels? - Management noted progress in the core business, particularly in the Teams segment, with improved onboarding and reduced friction leading to a 50% year-over-year increase in desktop activations [35][36] Question: Any changes in the view on Dash's monetization potential? - Management remains excited about Dash's recent product release and its ability to support various media formats, with positive customer feedback on new features [40][41] Question: Feedback from early adopters of Dash? - Early adopters appreciate the AI search capabilities and the ability to organize and share content across platforms, which is unique to Dash [47][48] Question: Insights on the consumer side of the business? - Management has not observed significant changes in consumer trends despite general macroeconomic concerns, with individual subscribers often using Dropbox for work-related purposes [51][52] Question: Sustainability of R&D spending? - Management indicated that the current R&D spending level is largely sustainable, with a focus on optimizing the core business while investing in higher growth opportunities like Dash [55][56] Question: Upcoming major integrations for Dash? - The company is focused on building a self-serve version of Dash to facilitate easier onboarding for existing and new customers, which is expected to accelerate growth [58][59]