Western Digital (WDC) shares surged 12.75% in early trading on Thursday, extending a powerful pre-market advance driven by a bullish company forecast and a positive analyst note.

The rally was sparked by Western Digital's guidance that first-quarter profit and revenue will exceed market expectations, significantly boosting investor confidence ahead of its August 5 earnings release. The upbeat outlook was complemented by peer Seagate Technology's strong quarterly results, which sent that stock up over 9% after hours and lifted the entire storage sector. Additionally, Wedbush raised its price target on Western Digital from $540 to $650 while maintaining an Outperform rating, providing further valuation support and attracting capital inflows.

The move also marks a continued recovery from a prior sell-off, when the stock declined over 12% across two consecutive sessions due to NAND industry headwinds, suggesting that the current surge reflects both company-specific optimism and broader sector momentum.