Evercore ISI's Amit Daryanani shares his bull case for the data storage stocks
Speakers
Amit Daryanani
— Senior Managing Director, Evercore ISI
Summary
Evercore ISI analyst Amit Daryanani joins Fast Money to discuss the surge in data storage and memory stocks. He argues the HDD market's Seagate-Western Digital duopoly is committed to supply discipline, making a supply-driven cycle unlikely, while NAND/DRAM capacity barriers differ. He also says Nvidia's CES comments extend the memory/storage demand story into 2027 and cites Western Digital's $12-$13 EPS power and relatively attractive valuation after the run-up.
- Amit Daryanani of Evercore ISI discusses why storage and memory stocks have rallied.
- HDD market is a duopoly of Seagate and Western Digital committed to not adding supply.
- NAND capacity can be added in 2-4 years; DRAM additions are harder due equipment shortages.
- HDD entry barriers are high, making a supply-driven cycle unlikely, though demand pauses are possible.
- Nvidia's CES memory comments add duration to the bullish storage narrative beyond 2026 into 2027.
- Western Digital is cited as an example with $12-$13 EPS power and still relatively inexpensive valuation.
Ideas
HDD duopoly supply discipline supports pricing
The HDD market is effectively a duopoly between Seagate and Western Digital, both of which are committed to not adding supply, are US-traded with an aligned investor base, and face high barriers to entry. That supply discipline makes a supply-driven HDD cycle unlikely and should help pricing, even though demand-driven pauses are still possible.
CES comments extend storage demand to 2027
Nvidia's CES comments on memory demand give the bullish data storage/memory narrative more duration, suggesting demand can extend beyond calendar 2026 into calendar 2027 and making the story a multiyear one with improved visibility.
