The popular research service can help you become a smarter, more self-assured investor, giving you access to daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens. It also includes access to the Zacks Style Scores. What are the Zacks Style Scores? The Zacks Style Scores, developed alongside the Zacks Rank, are complementary indicators that rate stocks based on three widely-followed investing methodologies; they also help investors ...

Based on the latest available data, GEN has gained about 9.1% so far this year. Meanwhile, the Business Services sector has returned an average of 6.1% on a year-to-date basis. This means that Gen Digital is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns. The Business Services group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Is Gen Digital (GEN) one of those stocks right now? Let's take a closer look at the stock's ...

Group 1 - The Zacks Style Scores are indicators that help investors select stocks with the best chances of outperforming the market over the next 30 days, rated from A to F based on value, growth, and momentum characteristics [2][10] - The Value Score identifies attractive and discounted stocks using ratios like P/E, PEG, and Price/Sales [3] - The Growth Score focuses on a company's financial strength and future outlook, analyzing projected and historical earnings, sales, and cash flow [4] Group 2 - The Momentum Score helps investors capitalize on price trends, using factors like one-week price change and monthly earnings estimate changes [5] - The VGM Score combines all three Style Scores, providing a comprehensive indicator for selecting stocks with attractive value, growth forecasts, and promising momentum [6] - The Zacks Rank is a proprietary stock-rating model that utilizes earnings estimate revisions to assist investors in building successful portfolios [7][10] Group 3 - Gen Digital (GEN) is a leading provider of cybersecurity solutions, known for brands like Norton Anti-Virus and Norton Internet Security [12] - GEN holds a Zacks Rank of 2 (Buy) and has a VGM Score of A, indicating strong potential for investors [12][13] - The company has a forward P/E ratio of 11, making it attractive for value investors, and has seen an upward revision in earnings estimates for fiscal 2025 [12][13]

Financial Performance - Net revenues for fiscal 2024 increased by $474 million to $3,812 million, a 14% increase compared to fiscal 2023[165][183] - Operating income decreased by $105 million to $1,122 million, primarily due to increased legal accruals and amortization from the Avast acquisition[166] - Net income decreased by $733 million to $616 million, with diluted net income per share dropping from $2.16 to $0.96[165][166] - Direct customer revenue increased to $3,353 million in fiscal 2024 from $2,933 million in fiscal 2023, representing a growth of 14.4%[190] - Total cyber safety revenues rose to $3,749 million in fiscal 2024, up from $3,274 million in fiscal 2023, marking an increase of 14.5%[190] Cash Flow and Shareholder Returns - Cash and cash equivalents increased by $96 million to $846 million, driven by cash generated from operating activities[166] - The company returned $1,947 million to shareholders and bondholders, including $441 million in stock repurchases and $323 million in dividends[166] - Cash provided by operating activities significantly increased to $2,064 million in fiscal 2024, up from $757 million in fiscal 2023, an increase of $1,307 million[208][209] - Cash flows from investing activities improved to $2 million in fiscal 2024, a significant recovery from $(6,547) million in fiscal 2023, primarily due to the absence of acquisition costs[210] - The company announced a cash dividend of $0.125 per share of common stock to be paid in June 2024, reflecting ongoing commitment to shareholder returns[219] Expenses and Cost Management - Cost of revenues as a percentage of net revenues increased from 18% to 19%, while gross profit margin decreased from 82% to 81%[182] - Total operating expenses as a percentage of net revenues rose from 46% to 51%, with significant increases in general and administrative expenses[182] - Operating expenses surged to $1,959 million in fiscal 2024, a 29% increase from $1,522 million in fiscal 2023, primarily due to higher legal accruals and amortization of intangible assets[195] - Cost of revenues increased by 24% to $731 million in fiscal 2024, up from $589 million in fiscal 2023, driven by higher amortization of acquired intangible assets[193][194] Tax and Legal Matters - The company experienced a $899 million income tax refund related to fiscal 2023 tax filings[166] - The company expects to incur total costs up to $150 million related to the restructuring plan following the acquisition of Avast, with $41 million in cash payments made during fiscal 2024[221] Debt and Financial Obligations - As of March 29, 2024, total outstanding debt amounted to $8,716 million, including $6,110 million in term loans and $2,600 million in senior notes[218] - As of March 29, 2024, the company has total contractual obligations of $12,031 million, including $8,716 million in debt principal payments and $2,438 million in interest payments[224] - The company has $1,346 million in long-term income taxes payable excluded from the contractual obligations table due to uncertainty regarding future cash flows[223] - The company has $2,606 million in fixed-rate Senior Notes, with a fair value of $2,624 million, and $6,110 million in variable interest rate debt based on SOFR[226][227] Interest Rate and Currency Risk Management - A hypothetical 100 basis point change in SOFR would result in a $61 million increase in annual interest expense for the company[227] - The company entered into interest rate swap agreements to hedge $1 billion of variable rate borrowings, effectively converting them to fixed rates of 3.762% and 3.55%[228] - The company is exposed to foreign currency exchange rate risks due to operations in multiple currencies, which may impact revenue expressed in USD[230][231] - Monthly foreign exchange forward contracts are executed to hedge foreign currency balance sheet exposures, with gains and losses recorded in Other income (expense)[232] - The company maintains a $1,500 million revolving credit facility that bears interest at a variable rate based on SOFR, subject to the same risks associated with adverse changes in SOFR[229] - The company does not use derivative financial instruments for speculative trading purposes and will continue to reassess its approach to managing foreign currency risks as international operations grow[233]

Core Insights - Gen Digital's international operations are crucial for understanding its financial resilience and growth potential [1][2] - The company's reliance on global markets can provide both opportunities and challenges [9][10] Financial Performance - Total revenue for the quarter was $967 million, reflecting a 2.1% increase [4] - EMEA contributed $234 million, accounting for 24.2% of total revenue, with a surprise increase of 0.27% compared to expectations [5] - APJ generated $97 million, representing 10.0% of total revenue, but fell short of expectations by 3.01% [6] Future Projections - Analysts project revenues of $968.37 million for the ongoing fiscal quarter, a 2.4% increase year-over-year, with EMEA and APJ expected to contribute $238.25 million and $100.62 million respectively [7] - For the full year, total revenue is anticipated to reach $3.91 billion, a 2.2% increase from the previous year, with EMEA and APJ expected to account for $980.33 million and $417.38 million respectively [8] Market Trends - The company's stock has increased by 16.5% over the past month, outperforming the Zacks S&P 500 composite's 2% rise [13] - Over the past three months, Gen Digital's shares gained 12.4%, compared to the S&P 500's 5.8% increase [13]

Avast Threat Report shows nearly 90% of cyberthreats currently rely on human manipulation TEMPE, Ariz. and PRAGUE, May 14, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Avast, a leader in digital security and privacy and brand of Gen™ (NASDAQ: GEN), has reported that social engineering threats – those which rely on human manipulation – account for most cyberthreats faced by individuals in 2024. According to the latest quarterly Avast Threat Report, which looks at the threat landscape from January-March 2024, scams, phishing and mal ...

The company is doing well in a world full of cyber threats.Cybersecurity stock Gen Digital (GEN 15.34%) ended the trading week on a high note. After publishing its latest quarterly report after market hours on Thursday, the company's shares raced more than 15% higher the following day as investors signaled their approval. That percentage rate was several orders of magnitude better than the 0.2% gain of the S&P 500 index on Friday.A double beat to round out fiscal 2024Gen Digital's fiscal fourth quarter of 2 ...

Gen Digital Inc. (GEN) shares rose 4.1% during Thursday’s extended trading session after the company reported better-than-expected results for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2024. Moreover, the top and bottom lines marked year-over-year improvements.Gen Digital was formerly known as NortonLifeLock Inc. and was trading under the NLOK ticker symbol. NortonLifeLock changed its name and ticker symbol, effective from Nov 8, 2022, following the merger of NortonLifeLock and Avast Plc. The newly named company unites ...

For the quarter ended March 2024, Gen Digital (GEN) reported revenue of $967 million, up 2.1% over the same period last year. EPS came in at $0.53, compared to $0.46 in the year-ago quarter.The reported revenue compares to the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $964.81 million, representing a surprise of +0.23%. The company delivered an EPS surprise of +1.92%, with the consensus EPS estimate being $0.52.While investors closely watch year-over-year changes in headline numbers -- revenue and earnings -- and how they ...

Gen Digital (GEN) came out with quarterly earnings of $0.53 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.52 per share. This compares to earnings of $0.46 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items.This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of 1.92%. A quarter ago, it was expected that this security software maker would post earnings of $0.50 per share when it actually produced earnings of $0.49, delivering a surprise of -2%.Over the last four quarters, the c ...