Gen Digital Inc. (NASDAQ:GEN) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Gen Digital Inc. (NASDAQ:GEN) has received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the ten analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $31.2857.

A number of research analysts have recently commented on GEN shares. Argus raised Gen Digital to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group cut Gen Digital from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Barclays upped their price target on Gen Digital from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Gen Digital in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $22.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Gen Digital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th.

Gen Digital Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:GEN opened at $24.41 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $14.71 billion, a PE ratio of 15.45 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.40. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $22.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.57. Gen Digital has a 1 year low of $17.78 and a 1 year high of $32.22.

Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.25 billion. Gen Digital had a return on equity of 55.47% and a net margin of 19.46%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.59 EPS. Gen Digital has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.680-0.700 EPS and its FY 2027 guidance at 2.850-2.950 EPS. Analysts forecast that Gen Digital will post 2.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Gen Digital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th were given a dividend of $0.125 per share. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 18th. Gen Digital’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.65%.

Insider Transactions at Gen Digital

In related news, Director John C. Chrystal acquired 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $27.06 per share, with a total value of $81,180.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 31,419 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $850,198.14. This trade represents a 10.56% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Ondrej Vlcek sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.78, for a total value of $2,478,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 3,832,724 shares in the company, valued at $94,974,900.72. This trade represents a 2.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 9.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Gen Digital

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GEN. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Gen Digital during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Gen Digital by 48.6% during the 3rd quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,223 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Weiss Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in Gen Digital during the 1st quarter worth about $41,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Gen Digital by 65.8% during the 4th quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 611 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Gen Digital by 221.5% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,717 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 1,183 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

About Gen Digital

Gen Digital (NASDAQ: GEN) is a global cybersecurity company specializing in consumer- and small-business-focused security, privacy, and identity protection solutions. The company offers a suite of products designed to safeguard devices, networks, and personal information against malware, ransomware, phishing attacks and other digital threats. With a focus on user-friendly interfaces and cross-platform compatibility, Gen Digital develops antivirus software, VPN services, parental controls, password management tools, and comprehensive identity-theft monitoring services.

Gen Digital traces its origins to the consumer software division of Symantec Corporation, which was spun off in late 2019 under the NortonLifeLock name.