Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) Upgraded at Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

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

Gen Digital Stock Down 0.5%

Gen Digital stock opened at $22.29 on Monday. Gen Digital has a 12 month low of $21.33 and a 12 month high of $32.22. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $26.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.50. The firm has a market cap of $13.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.98, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.11.

Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.01. Gen Digital had a net margin of 12.76% and a return on equity of 56.76%. The firm had revenue of $1.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.56 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.8% on a year-over-year basis. 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. Equities analysts predict that Gen Digital will post 2.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gen Digital Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Ondrej Vlcek sold 113,674 shares of Gen Digital stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was 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 directly owned 3,932,980 shares in the company, valued at approximately $106,662,417.60. This trade represents a 2.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 9.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gen Digital

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of GEN. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gen Digital during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its position in Gen Digital by 92.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 1,104 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 529 shares during the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management raised its stake in Gen Digital by 1,183.3% during the third quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 1,078 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 994 shares during the period. Clearstead Advisors LLC raised its stake 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 boosted its holdings in shares of Gen Digital by 65.8% in the 4th 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. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Gen Digital Company Profile

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.