Gen Digital Inc. (NASDAQ:GEN) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Gen Digital Inc. (NASDAQ:GEN) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the nine ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $32.7143.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Gen Digital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Gen Digital in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Barclays decreased their price target on Gen Digital from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on Gen Digital in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $22.00 price target for the company. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Gen Digital from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gen Digital

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gen Digital during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its position in shares of Gen Digital by 92.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 1,104 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 529 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Gen Digital by 1,183.3% in the 3rd quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 1,078 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 994 shares during the period. Clearstead Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Gen Digital by 48.6% in the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,223 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 611 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Gen Digital Stock Performance

NASDAQ:GEN opened at $18.71 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.50, a current ratio of 0.47 and a quick ratio of 0.47. The firm has a market cap of $11.33 billion, a PE ratio of 19.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.15. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $22.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.38. Gen Digital has a 1-year low of $18.20 and a 1-year high of $32.22.

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

Gen Digital Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Monday, February 16th were given a dividend of $0.125 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 13th. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Gen Digital’s dividend payout ratio is 51.55%.

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.