Royal Bank Of Canada Has Lowered Expectations for Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) Stock Price

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada cut Gen Digital’s price target from $30 to $26 while maintaining a “sector perform” rating, implying 14.46% upside from the stock’s $22.72 price. The broader analyst consensus is “Hold,” with a $30.80 target.
• Gen Digital reported quarterly EPS of $0.71, beating estimates by $0.02, while revenue rose 6.3% year over year to $1.34 billion. Analysts expect full-year EPS of approximately $2.64.
• Company insiders sold 558,508 shares worth about $16.4 million over the past three months, while institutional investors continue to own a substantial 81.38% of Gen Digital’s stock.

Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN - Get Free Report) had its target price decreased by stock analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada from $30.00 to $26.00 in a report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "sector perform" rating on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada's price objective suggests a potential upside of 14.46% from the company's current price.

GEN has been the subject of several other research reports. Wall Street Zen cut Gen Digital from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, August 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Gen Digital from $22.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Barclays upped their target price on Gen Digital from $27.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Gen Digital from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $30.80.

Gen Digital Price Performance

NASDAQ:GEN opened at $22.72 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $13.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.18, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.22. Gen Digital has a one year low of $17.78 and a one year high of $31.65. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $28.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $24.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.00, a current ratio of 0.47 and a quick ratio of 0.47.

Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.02. Gen Digital had a net margin of 20.73% and a return on equity of 55.93%. The company had revenue of $1.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.31 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.64 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. 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. Analysts anticipate that Gen Digital will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Gen Digital news, insider Travis Witteveen sold 30,000 shares of Gen Digital stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.42, for a total transaction of $882,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 496,545 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,608,353.90. This trade represents a 5.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Bryan Seuk Ko sold 28,248 shares of Gen Digital stock in a transaction on Friday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.67, for a total value of $866,366.16. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 744,262 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,826,515.54. The trade was a 3.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 558,508 shares of company stock worth $16,356,093 over the last three months. 9.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gen Digital

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Gen Digital by 14.5% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,376 shares of the company's stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 427 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Gen Digital by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 7,735 shares of the company's stock worth $210,000 after purchasing an additional 430 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank boosted its stake in shares of Gen Digital by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 5,216 shares of the company's stock valued at $142,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd grew its holdings in Gen Digital by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 141,142 shares of the company's stock worth $2,658,000 after acquiring an additional 555 shares during the period. Finally, Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in Gen Digital by 5.1% in the second quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. now owns 12,231 shares of the company's stock valued at $304,000 after buying an additional 591 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Gen Digital

Gen Digital Inc NASDAQ: GEN is a global cybersecurity and consumer safety company that provides products designed to help individuals and families protect their devices, online identities, personal information and digital privacy. The company serves customers through a portfolio of consumer-focused cybersecurity and privacy brands.

Its products and services include antivirus and device security, identity theft protection, virtual private networks, password management, online privacy tools, scam protection and family safety features.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.