Shares of Western Digital Corp. WDC, +5.82% shot up 5.6% in afternoon trading Wednesday toward a sixth-straight gain, enough to make the data storage company’s stock the biggest gainer among S&P 500 SPX, +0.13% components. Benchmark analyst Mark Miller said he believes the rally is being driven by South Korea-based rival Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.’s 005930, -1.42% announcement that it had to “temporarily adjust operations” a its manufacturing facilities in Xi’an, China, had to put its plant Xian, China as a result of the “ongoing COVID-19 situation.” Miller reiterated the buy rating he’s had on Western Digital’s stock since at least the past 2 1/2 years, and kept his stock price target at $92, which implies a TK% upside from current levels. The stock, which was headed for the highest close since Aug. 11, has soared 18.7% during its current win streak, which would be the longest since the six-day stretch ended Feb. 19. The stock’s rally Wednesday comes as the SPDR Technology Select Sector XLK, +0.03% slipped 0.1% while the S&P 500 inched up 0.1%.
