Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) in a research report report published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat reports. The firm issued an equal weight rating and a $22.00 target price on the stock.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on GEN. Zacks Research upgraded Gen Digital from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Gen Digital in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised Gen Digital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 8th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Gen Digital from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Gen Digital from $33.00 to $29.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Gen Digital has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $32.71.

Gen Digital Stock Up 0.2%

Gen Digital stock opened at $22.40 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $24.81 and a 200-day moving average of $26.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.50. Gen Digital has a twelve month low of $21.33 and a twelve month high of $32.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.57 billion, a PE ratio of 23.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.11.

Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.23 billion. Gen Digital had a net margin of 12.76% and a return on equity of 56.76%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 25.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.56 earnings per share. Gen Digital has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 0.640-0.660 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 2.540-2.560 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Gen Digital will post 2.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gen Digital Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 16th will be given a dividend of $0.125 per share. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. Gen Digital’s dividend payout ratio is 51.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Ondrej Vlcek sold 113,674 shares of Gen Digital stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.12, for a total value of $3,082,838.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 3,932,980 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $106,662,417.60. This trade represents a 2.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 9.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gen Digital

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Gen Digital in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in Gen Digital by 92.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 1,104 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 529 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Gen Digital by 1,183.3% during the 3rd quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 1,078 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 994 shares during the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC boosted its position in Gen Digital by 48.6% during the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,223 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Gen Digital by 65.8% in the fourth quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,539 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 611 shares during the last quarter. 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.