Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) Reaches New 52-Week Low – Here’s What Happened

Gen Digital Inc. (NASDAQ:GEN)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $20.46 and last traded at $20.61, with a volume of 6812835 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $20.68.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Gen Digital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, February 8th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Gen Digital from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Gen Digital in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $22.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Gen Digital in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Gen Digital from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $32.71.

Gen Digital Trading Down 2.1%

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 stock has a 50-day moving average price of $23.61 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $26.08. The stock has a market cap of $12.46 billion, a PE ratio of 21.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.11.

Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.01. Gen Digital had a return on equity of 56.76% and a net margin of 12.76%.The company had revenue of $1.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.56 earnings per share. The firm’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. Sell-side analysts forecast that Gen Digital Inc. will post 2.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gen Digital Dividend Announcement

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Gen Digital by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,213,797 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,050,150,000 after buying an additional 964,046 shares in the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group grew its position in Gen Digital by 48.1% in the second quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 978,066 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,755,000 after acquiring an additional 317,468 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its stake in Gen Digital by 39.4% during the second quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 359,142 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,559,000 after acquiring an additional 101,580 shares during the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Gen Digital during the third quarter worth approximately $8,238,000. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd raised its position in Gen Digital by 525.5% during the third quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 83,826 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,380,000 after purchasing an additional 70,424 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.