Barclays Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) Stock

Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) had its target price upped by stock analysts at Barclays from $27.00 to $32.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Barclays‘s price target would indicate a potential upside of 10.13% from the stock’s current price.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Gen Digital from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of Gen Digital in a report on Friday. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Gen Digital from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Gen Digital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Gen Digital from $22.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Gen Digital has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.67.

Gen Digital Stock Performance

Shares of GEN stock traded up $0.96 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $29.06. 5,235,837 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,687,653. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.39 billion, a PE ratio of 18.39 and a beta of 1.21. Gen Digital has a 12 month low of $17.78 and a 12 month high of $32.22. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $25.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.29.

Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. Gen Digital had a return on equity of 55.47% and a net margin of 19.46%.Gen Digital’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.64 EPS. Gen Digital has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.870-2.970 EPS and its Q2 2027 guidance at 0.710-0.730 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Gen Digital will post 2.61 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director John C. Chrystal bought 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $27.06 per share, with a total value of $81,180.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 31,419 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $850,198.14. The trade was a 10.56% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ondrej Vlcek sold 100,000 shares of Gen Digital stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.78, for a total transaction of $2,478,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 3,832,724 shares in the company, valued at approximately $94,974,900.72. This represents a 2.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 9.70% 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 added to or reduced their stakes in GEN. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Gen Digital by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 73,310,110 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,993,302,000 after acquiring an additional 1,096,313 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in Gen Digital by 3.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 30,558,806 shares of the company’s stock valued at $867,565,000 after purchasing an additional 1,015,755 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in Gen Digital by 6.7% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 22,473,917 shares of the company’s stock valued at $660,730,000 after purchasing an additional 1,406,869 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in Gen Digital by 22.3% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 19,941,546 shares of the company’s stock valued at $542,211,000 after purchasing an additional 3,640,451 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners grew its stake in shares of Gen Digital by 14.3% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 15,644,289 shares of the company’s stock worth $425,336,000 after buying an additional 1,954,712 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Gen Digital News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly results exceeded expectations: Gen Digital reported adjusted earnings of $0.71 per share, above the $0.69 consensus estimate, while revenue increased 6.3% year over year to $1.34 billion, topping the $1.31 billion forecast. The company also cited double-digit bookings growth. Gen Digital Q1 Earnings Beat Estimates, Revenues Increase Year over Year
• Positive Sentiment: Fiscal 2027 guidance was raised: Gen now expects full-year adjusted EPS of $2.87-$2.97, above the $2.83 analyst consensus, and revenue of $5.4-$5.5 billion. Second-quarter EPS guidance of $0.71-$0.73 also exceeds the $0.70 consensus. Gen Digital Raises Annual Forecast on Strong Cybersecurity Demand
• Positive Sentiment: Cybersecurity demand remains strong: Management’s outlook suggests continued consumer and family spending on digital-security products as online threats become more sophisticated. Gen Further Accelerates in Q1 FY27 and Raises Full Year Guidance
• Neutral Sentiment: Dividend announced: Gen declared a quarterly dividend of $0.125 per share, payable September 9 to shareholders of record August 17. The $0.50 annualized payout represents an indicated yield of approximately 1.7%.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst stance remains cautious: Wells Fargo raised its price target from $22 to $28 but maintained an “equal weight” rating, implying modest downside from the prevailing share price. Wells Fargo Price Target Update

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.