STX

Zacks has added five stocks to its Strong Buy list today: Concrete Pumping Holdings (BBCP) with 11.8% earnings estimate increase, United Community Banks (UCB) with 2.1% increase, Transportadora De Gas (TGS) with 0.7% increase, Seagate Technology (STX) with 0.1% increase, and Immunic (IMUX) with 4.4% increase over the last 60 days.

Seagate (STX) has been highlighted as an attractive growth stock with a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and Growth Score of A. The company demonstrates exceptional earnings growth of 131.9% expected this year (versus industry average of 57.9%) and strong year-over-year cash flow growth of 103.3% (compared to industry average of 23.9%). Positive earnings estimate revisions further support its potential as an outperformer for growth investors.

Seagate (STX) is highlighted as a stock with strong potential to beat upcoming earnings estimates. The company has a track record of beating earnings in recent quarters with an average surprise of 14.55%, a positive Earnings ESP of +2.49%, and a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) rating. The next earnings report is expected on October 27, 2026.

Seagate Technology has been upgraded to a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) rating, reflecting an upward trend in earnings estimates over the past three months with a 33.2% increase in consensus estimates. The upgrade positions the company in the top 20% of Zacks-covered stocks, suggesting potential near-term stock price appreciation driven by improving business fundamentals.

Both Seagate Technology (STX) and Western Digital (WDC) are benefiting from AI-driven demand for high-capacity hard disk drives in data centers. Seagate shows stronger near-term momentum with 34% revenue growth, expanding margins, and faster HAMR monetization, while Western Digital is positioned for 2027+ growth with its 40TB ePMR ramp and planned 44TB HAMR launch. However, both stocks have already posted substantial 2026 gains and face risks from potential supply expansion by competitors like Toshiba.

Sandisk is advancing its NAND flash technology with BiCS 8 ramping to majority production and BiCS 10 in preparation, while investing in high-bandwidth flash for AI architectures. The company's datacenter segment grew to 38% of its bit portfolio, driven by enterprise TLC SSDs and QLC Stargate platform adoption. However, it faces intense competition from Micron Technology in data-center SSDs and Seagate Technology in mass-capacity storage solutions.

As AI data centers expand, Seagate Technology is positioned as a critical infrastructure provider for bulk storage needs. The company reported 48% revenue growth to $3.63 billion and achieved record operating margins of 34.6%, driven by demand for its HAMR hard drive technology. While the stock has surged over 200% in the past year, investors should consider risks including high expectations, potential order delays, and supply chain challenges.

Western Digital reported strong fiscal Q1 2027 results with 55% revenue growth to $4.38 billion, 161% adjusted EPS growth, and a 17% dividend increase. Despite beating guidance and raising fiscal Q2 outlook to 66-72% growth, the stock has fallen 53% from its June peak due to investor concerns about hard drive pricing sustainability. The analyst suggests the valuation at 15x forward earnings reflects much of the pricing risk and recommends a small position, with the main risk being earlier-than-expected pricing declines.

Seagate Technology is positioned as a compelling buy ahead of its fiscal Q1 2027 earnings report on October 27. The company expects revenues of $4.1 billion and non-GAAP EPS of $7.30, representing 28% EPS growth. Strong AI-driven storage demand, robust free cash flow generation of $3.1 billion in fiscal 2026, superior ROE of 386.9%, and a consistent 12.4% average earnings surprise over four quarters support a positive outlook.

CoStar Group is set to report Q3 2026 results on Oct. 27, with expected revenues between $935-945 million (13% YoY growth) and adjusted EPS of 31-34 cents. The company's Commercial and Residential segments are expected to benefit from strong platform adoption and marketplace growth, though results may be pressured by declining Ten-X transaction revenues, Homes.com sales-force restructuring, and pricing pressures at Apartments.com. The Zacks model does not predict an earnings beat with a 0.00% Earnings ESP and Rank #2.

Cadence Design Systems expects Q3 2026 revenues of $1.595-$1.625 billion and non-GAAP EPS of $2.01-$2.07, driven by strong AI demand and agentic AI adoption. The company benefits from robust backlog of $8.1 billion and expanding partnerships with tech giants, though macro uncertainty and U.S.-China tensions pose risks. Stock has underperformed its industry by 23.6% over the past six months.

MaxLinear (MXL) reported Q3 2026 earnings of 62 cents per share, beating estimates by 10.71%, with revenues surging 72% year-over-year to $218.1 million. Infrastructure revenues jumped 210% year-over-year to $125 million, driven by strong demand for AI optical interconnects. The company raised its 2026 optical data center revenue outlook to $250-$270 million and expects Q4 revenues between $240-$260 million.

F5 Inc. is scheduled to report Q4 fiscal 2026 results on Oct. 27, projecting revenues of $870-$890 million (9% growth) and non-GAAP EPS of $4.14-$4.26. While the company benefits from data center expansion, AI workloads, and infrastructure modernization demand, an Earnings ESP of 0.00% and Zacks Rank #3 suggest no likely earnings beat. Headwinds include slower perpetual software license growth, macroeconomic uncertainty, and integration costs.

Meta reported Q3 2026 revenues of $64.6B, up 26% YoY, driven by strong advertising demand with ad impressions up 10% and average ad prices up 14%. However, operating margin contracted to 20% from 40% due to a $9.89B legal charge and increased AI infrastructure spending. The company launched its Muse AI agent with over 10 million users and expects continued growth through 2027, though capital expenditures surged to $34.91B, resulting in negative free cash flow.

Western Digital is set to report Q1 fiscal 2027 earnings on October 22, projecting 45% YoY revenue growth to $4.1 billion driven by AI-driven storage demand and high-capacity HDD launches. The company has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) with 0.00% Earnings ESP, suggesting no earnings beat expected. While strong fundamentals and AI/cloud exposure are positive, intense competition, execution risks, and elevated valuations present concerns.

Seagate Technology is strengthening profitability through its Mozaic 4 heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) platform, which supports up to 44TB storage capacity per drive. The company expects Mozaic 4 to represent 50% of HAMR exabyte shipments by end of 2026, with non-GAAP gross margin reaching 52.7% in fiscal Q4 2026. Strong cloud and AI workload demand, combined with improved manufacturing efficiency and higher-capacity drive adoption, support continued margin expansion in fiscal 2027.

Silicon Motion Technology Corporation develops NAND flash controllers and embedded storage solutions for smartphones, positioning itself to benefit from growing demand for AI-enabled devices requiring faster and more efficient storage. The company's UFS and eMMC controller portfolios serve various smartphone price segments. However, it faces competition from Seagate and Micron, and trades at a higher valuation (14.66 forward P/E) than its industry average (10.22), with a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) rating.

Elon Musk praised Micron Technology for reasonable memory chip pricing amid rising AI infrastructure demand. However, global chip stocks tumbled after China's CXMT announced plans to launch advanced server memory ahead of competitors, threatening high-margin AI chip profits.

Micron reported strong quarterly results with record DRAM and NAND revenues, signed 26 strategic customer agreements through 2030, and increased its buyback authorization to $35.16 billion. Despite strong fundamentals, rising rate concerns and competitive pressures weighed on the sector.

Memory stocks face selling pressure following China's ChangXin Memory Technologies' announcement of a new DRAM architecture. However, analysts view the pullback as a buying opportunity for Micron and Sandisk, citing strong AI-driven demand, long-term customer agreements, and robust revenue visibility that support continued growth despite competitive threats.

Seagate Technology is positioned as an overlooked AI beneficiary, with 34% revenue growth driven by data center demand for high-capacity storage. The company's nearline hard drive supply is allocated through 2027, and its next-generation Mozaic 4+ drives (up to 44TB) are entering production. Upcoming Mozaic 5+ qualification shipments in late 2027 represent another key milestone for investors to monitor.