Franklin Resources Inc. Grows Position in Gen Digital Inc. $GEN

Key Points

• Franklin Resources raised its stake in Gen Digital by 3.6% in Q3 to 8,454,929 shares, representing about 1.37% ownership worth $240.0M.
• Other institutions also boosted positions—notably Amundi and Arrowstreet—while Vanguard holds 71,249,751 shares, leaving institutional ownership at ~81.38%.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Hold" with a $32.71 price target, even as GEN trades near $21 (52-week range $20.93–$32.22); the company recently beat EPS estimates and reported revenue up 25.8% year-over-year.

Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Gen Digital Inc. (NASDAQ:GEN - Free Report) by 3.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,454,929 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 294,497 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 1.37% of Gen Digital worth $240,035,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of GEN. Amundi boosted its stake in shares of Gen Digital by 273.3% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 4,303,552 shares of the company's stock worth $128,289,000 after buying an additional 3,150,651 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in Gen Digital by 82.7% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 4,497,501 shares of the company's stock valued at $132,227,000 after acquiring an additional 2,035,925 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Gen Digital by 2.2% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 71,249,751 shares of the company's stock worth $2,094,743,000 after buying an additional 1,558,983 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Gen Digital by 6.7% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 22,473,917 shares of the company's stock worth $660,730,000 after acquiring an additional 1,406,869 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in Gen Digital by 7.4% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 15,899,158 shares of the company's stock valued at $467,436,000 after purchasing an additional 1,088,983 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on GEN. Zacks Research raised Gen Digital from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Gen Digital from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Gen Digital in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $22.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Gen Digital in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Gen Digital from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, February 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $32.71.

Gen Digital Stock Performance

Shares of GEN stock opened at $21.00 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.50. Gen Digital Inc. has a 52 week low of $20.93 and a 52 week high of $32.22. The company has a market cap of $12.72 billion, a PE ratio of 21.65, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.11. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $24.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.39.

Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.01. Gen Digital had a net margin of 12.76% and a return on equity of 56.76%. The company had revenue of $1.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.56 earnings per share. Gen Digital'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. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Gen Digital Inc. will post 2.05 EPS for the current year.

Gen Digital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 16th were issued a $0.125 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 13th. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Gen Digital's payout ratio is currently 51.55%.

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.

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