Seagate Technology PLC (STX) shares surged 6.52% in post-market trading, staging a sharp recovery after a steep regular-session selloff, as the data storage giant reported fiscal fourth-quarter results that handily beat Wall Street expectations and issued a forecast well above analyst estimates.
The company posted adjusted earnings of $5.71 per share, soaring past the consensus estimate of $5.09, while revenue climbed 48.5% year-over-year to $3.63 billion, topping the $3.49 billion analysts had forecast. The standout performance was fueled by robust demand from cloud data center customers, as the rapid expansion of AI infrastructure continues to drive insatiable need for high-capacity hard disk drives. Seagate also reported a non-GAAP gross margin of 52.7% and record free cash flow of $1.1 billion for the quarter.
Looking ahead, Seagate guided for fiscal first-quarter revenue of $4.1 billion, plus or minus $100 million, and adjusted earnings of $7.30 per share, both well above consensus estimates. CEO Dave Mosley attributed the momentum to "robust cloud data center demand and disciplined execution," adding that the company sees "durable long-term demand for mass capacity storage" as AI accelerates data generation and its value.