Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Wall Street Zen

Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on GEN. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Gen Digital from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. 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 target price on the stock. Barclays upped their price target on Gen Digital from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Gen Digital from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Argus raised Gen Digital to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.29.

Gen Digital Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GEN opened at $24.18 on Friday. Gen Digital has a 12-month low of $17.78 and a 12-month high of $32.22. The company has a market capitalization of $14.57 billion, a PE ratio of 15.30 and a beta of 1.21. The business has a 50 day moving average of $22.65 and a two-hundred day moving average of $23.53. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07.

Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.02. Gen Digital had a net margin of 19.46% and a return on equity of 55.47%. The firm had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.25 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.59 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 27.0% compared to the same quarter last year. 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. As a group, analysts forecast that Gen Digital will post 2.59 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Gen Digital news, Director Ondrej Vlcek sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the director directly owned 3,832,724 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $94,974,900.72. This trade represents a 2.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John C. Chrystal purchased 3,000 shares of Gen Digital stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $27.06 per share, for a total transaction of $81,180.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 31,419 shares in the company, valued at approximately $850,198.14. This trade represents a 10.56% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 9.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gen Digital

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Gen Digital by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 16,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $441,000 after purchasing an additional 387 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Gen Digital by 20.9% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,255 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares during the period. Clearstead Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Gen Digital by 48.6% in the 3rd quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,223 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in Gen Digital by 22.9% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 2,223 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 414 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tealwood Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Gen Digital by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Tealwood Asset Management Inc. now owns 81,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,222,000 after buying an additional 426 shares during the period. 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.