Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) Releases Q1 2027 Earnings Guidance

Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) issued an update on its first quarter 2027 earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of 0.680-0.700 for the period, compared to the consensus estimate of 0.670. The company issued revenue guidance of $1.3 billion-$1.3 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $1.3 billion. Gen Digital also updated its FY 2027 guidance to 2.850-2.950 EPS.

Gen Digital Trading Up 3.2%

NASDAQ GEN traded up $0.63 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $20.19. The company had a trading volume of 14,247,313 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,712,784. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $20.19 and a 200 day moving average of $23.94. Gen Digital has a 1-year low of $17.78 and a 1-year high of $32.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.81 and a beta of 1.10.

Gen Digital (NASDAQ:GEN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.56 earnings per share. Gen Digital’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Gen Digital will post 2.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on GEN shares. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Gen Digital from $32.00 to $26.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Gen Digital in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Gen Digital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 25th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Gen Digital from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Gen Digital from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $31.86.

Institutional Trading of Gen Digital

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in GEN. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Gen Digital by 1.1% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,703,712 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,757,000 after buying an additional 28,522 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gen Digital during the first quarter worth approximately $205,000. Woodline Partners LP increased its stake in shares of Gen Digital by 37.8% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 27,590 shares of the company’s stock worth $732,000 after buying an additional 7,562 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth increased its stake in shares of Gen Digital by 9.7% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 22,347 shares of the company’s stock worth $593,000 after buying an additional 1,980 shares during the period. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Gen Digital by 221.5% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,717 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 1,183 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is currently 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.