Empowered Funds LLC Acquires 169,221 Shares of Gen Digital Inc. $GEN

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC increased its Gen Digital stake by 38.8% in the first quarter, purchasing 169,221 shares to reach 605,308 shares valued at approximately $11.4 million. Institutional investors collectively own 81.38% of the company.
• Insider activity was mixed: Director John C. Chrystal bought 3,000 shares, while Director Ondrej Vlcek sold 100,000 shares. Company insiders own 9.30% of Gen Digital.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $29.33. Gen Digital recently exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, with revenue up 27% year over year, and pays a quarterly dividend of $0.125 per share.

Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in shares of Gen Digital Inc. (NASDAQ:GEN - Free Report) by 38.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 605,308 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 169,221 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC owned approximately 0.10% of Gen Digital worth $11,398,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Gen Digital by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 73,310,110 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,993,302,000 after buying an additional 1,096,313 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its position in Gen Digital by 3.4% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 30,558,806 shares of the company's stock worth $867,565,000 after acquiring an additional 1,015,755 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Gen Digital by 6.7% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 22,473,917 shares of the company's stock valued at $660,730,000 after acquiring an additional 1,406,869 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in Gen Digital by 22.3% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 19,941,546 shares of the company's stock valued at $542,211,000 after acquiring an additional 3,640,451 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners grew its position in shares of Gen Digital by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 15,644,289 shares of the company's stock valued at $425,336,000 after acquiring an additional 1,954,712 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director John C. Chrystal acquired 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $27.06 per share, for a total transaction of $81,180.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 31,419 shares in the company, valued at $850,198.14. This trade represents a 10.56% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Ondrej Vlcek sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.78, for a total value of $2,478,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 3,832,724 shares in the company, valued at $94,974,900.72. This trade represents a 2.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 9.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $27.00 price target on shares of Gen Digital in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Argus raised Gen Digital to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Barclays increased their price objective on Gen Digital from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered Gen Digital from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Gen Digital from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. One equities research 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $29.33.

Gen Digital Stock Performance

NASDAQ GEN opened at $27.29 on Friday. The company's 50 day moving average is $25.57 and its 200-day moving average is $23.23. Gen Digital Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.78 and a 12-month high of $32.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.07. The firm has a market cap of $16.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.27 and a beta of 1.21.

Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.02. Gen Digital had a net margin of 19.46% and a return on equity of 55.47%. The company had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.25 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.59 EPS. Gen Digital's revenue for the quarter was up 27.0% on a year-over-year basis. Gen Digital has set its Q1 2027 guidance at 0.680-0.700 EPS and its FY 2027 guidance at 2.850-2.950 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Gen Digital Inc. will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Gen Digital Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th were given a dividend of $0.125 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Gen Digital's dividend payout ratio is currently 31.65%.

Gen Digital 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding GEN? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Gen Digital Inc. (NASDAQ:GEN - Free Report).

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.