Organizations’ continuing adoption of hybrid working models and an ongoing digital transformation have fostered rising demand for computer hardware to utilize advanced technologies. As a result, popular computer hardware stocks Western Digital (WDC) and Seagate (STX) should benefit from growing investor optimism about this space. But let’s find out which of these two stocks is a better buy now.Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) in San Jose, Calif., and Dublin, Ireland-based Seagate Technology Holdings plc (STX) are two prominent players in the computer hardware industry. WDC develops, manufactures, and sells data storage devices and solutions, mainly hard-disk drives (HDDs) and solid-state drives (SDDs), and serves original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), distributors, resellers, and retailers worldwide. In comparison, STX develops, produces, and distributes data storage products and electronic data storage solutions. It also provides storage subsystems and mass capacity-optimized private cloud storage solutions for enterprises, cloud service providers, and scale-out storage servers and OEMs.
Because remote working is expected to continue with the impact of the now rampant COVID-19 Delta variant, organizations are increasingly adopting hybrid working models as a long-term solution. So, the need for efficient computing devices should drive massive demand for computer hardware, especially hard disk drives (HDDs) and solid-state drives (SDDs). The continuing digital transformation is also driving the demand for computer hardware. In fact, the global computer hardware market is expected to grow at 6% CAGR to $1.18 billion by 2025. Consequently, both WDC and STX should see soaring demand for their products in the coming months.
But while WDC's share price declined 9.2% over the past month, STX has declined only marginally. In terms of the past six months’ performance, STX is a clear winner with 33% gains versus WDC’s 23.5%. But, which of these stocks is a better pick now? Let’s find out.