Western Digital Corp posts wider Q2 loss, sees impact of structural changes

(Reuters) – Data storage products maker Western Digital Corp posted a wider-than-expected quarterly adjusted loss on Thursday, due to the impact of structural changes the company implemented in its flash and HDD businesses.

Shares of the company were down about 4% in after-market trading.

Last quarter, the company said it would spin off its flash memory business, which has been grappling with a supply glut after talks of merging the unit with Japan’s Kioxia stalled, by the second half of 2024.

The company said its second-quarter loss included $156 million of underutilization-related charges in Flash and HDD.

On an adjusted basis, the company reported a loss of 69 cents per share, missing analysts’ average estimate of a loss of $1.31 per share, according to LSEG data.

Western Digital expects current-quarter adjusted profit ranging from a loss of $0.10 to a profit of $0.20 per share.

The company reported revenue of $3.03 billion for the quarter ended Dec. 29. Analysts had expected revenue of $3.39 billion.