Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) Stock Gets Price Target Increase from Royal Bank Of Canada

Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) had its price objective upped by equities researchers at Royal Bank Of Canada from $24.00 to $27.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “sector perform” rating on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada‘s target price points to a potential downside of 4.26% from the company’s current price.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Gen Digital from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Gen Digital from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Gen Digital from $22.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Gen Digital from $27.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Gen Digital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, August 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $31.60.

Gen Digital Stock Performance

NASDAQ:GEN traded up $3.85 on Thursday, hitting $28.20. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 11,126,960 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,219,207. Gen Digital has a one year low of $17.78 and a one year high of $31.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.26. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $26.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of $24.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.00.

Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The company reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.02. Gen Digital had a return on equity of 55.93% and a net margin of 20.73%. The business had revenue of $1.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.62 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Gen Digital will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Gen Digital

In other Gen Digital news, COO Bryan Seuk Ko sold 28,248 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.67, for a total transaction of $866,366.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 744,262 shares in the company, valued at $22,826,515.54. The trade was a 3.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Travis Witteveen sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.42, for a total value of $882,600.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 496,545 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,608,353.90. The trade was a 5.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 558,508 shares of company stock valued at $16,356,093. Company insiders own 9.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gen Digital

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its position in shares of Gen Digital by 452.2% during the 2nd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 1,132 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 927 shares during the last quarter. Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new position in Gen Digital in the first quarter valued at about $41,000. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich acquired a new position in Gen Digital during the third quarter worth about $44,000. Pension & Wealth Management Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Gen Digital in the third quarter worth about $47,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its stake in shares of Gen Digital by 86.9% in the 2nd quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,921 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 893 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Gen Digital News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Gen Digital this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 results exceeded expectations: Adjusted earnings were $0.74 per share versus the $0.72 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 12.2% year over year to $1.37 billion, above the $1.34 billion forecast. Gen Digital earnings results
• Positive Sentiment: Management raised its fiscal 2027 outlook: Gen cited strong cybersecurity demand, double-digit growth and a higher annual earnings floor. Record Cyber Safety margins and strength in financial wellness also supported the improved outlook. Gen Digital raises annual revenue forecast
• Positive Sentiment: Growth was broad-based: Partner-channel revenue increased 40% year over year to $295 million, helping reinforce investor confidence in Gen’s expansion strategy. Gen Digital long-term investor takeaways
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support improved: Morgan Stanley raised its price target for GEN to $34 from $32, indicating greater confidence in the company’s earnings trajectory. Morgan Stanley price-target increase
• Positive Sentiment: Shareholder returns remain supported: Gen declared a quarterly dividend of $0.125 per share, or $0.50 annualized, representing an approximately 2.1% yield. Gen Digital dividend announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: Gen said it is not currently pursuing a transformative acquisition, reducing near-term M&A speculation but emphasizing organic growth and capital discipline. Gen Digital M&A and earnings coverage

About Gen Digital

Gen Digital Inc (NASDAQ: GEN) is a cybersecurity company that provides digital safety, privacy, and identity protection products for consumers. Its services are designed to help protect devices, personal information, online accounts, and digital identities from malware, fraud, identity theft, scams, and other cyber threats.

The company operates a portfolio of consumer brands that includes Norton, Avast, LifeLock, Avira, AVG, ReputationDefender, and CCleaner. Its offerings include antivirus and device security software, virtual private network services, password management, identity theft monitoring and restoration support, privacy tools, scam protection, and performance and optimization utilities.

Gen Digital serves customers internationally through direct subscriptions and distribution partnerships.