Short Interest in Gen Digital Inc. (NASDAQ:GEN) Sees 25% Increase

Gen Digital Inc. (NASDAQ:GEN) experienced a considerable rise in short interest during February. As of February 15th, the total short interest reached 18,710,000 shares, marking a 25.0% increase from the 14,970,000 shares reported at the end of January. This increase means that approximately 3.4% of the company’s total shares are currently sold short. Given the average daily trading volume of 3,350,000 shares, the short-interest ratio stands at about 5.6 days.

Analyst Ratings Overview

In a separate update, UBS Group upgraded Gen Digital to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report released on December 4th.

Market Performance of Gen Digital

On Thursday, during midday trading, shares of NASDAQ GEN fell by 0.8%, dropping $0.22 to reach $27.33. A total of 3,098,493 shares changed hands, which is lower than the average trading volume of 3,625,812. The stock has seen a 12-month low of $19.58 and a high of $31.72. Gen Digital currently holds a market capitalization of $16.84 billion, with a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19, and a beta value of 0.83. The company’s debt-to-equity ratio is notably high at 3.29, and both its current and quick ratios are at 0.35. Additionally, the company's 50-day simple moving average is $27.44, while the 200-day simple moving average is $27.81.

Gen Digital released its most recent earnings report on January 30th, disclosing earnings of $0.52 per share, which fell short of analysts' expectations of $0.55 by $0.03. The company boasts a net margin of 16.32% and a return on equity of 58.83%. Analysts project that Gen Digital will report annual earnings of $2.05 per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading Activities

Several institutional investors have recently adjusted their positions in Gen Digital. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in the company by 5.4% during the fourth quarter and now owns 25,212 shares valued at approximately $690,000 after acquiring more shares. QSM Asset Management Ltd also acquired a new stake worth roughly $5,373,000 during the same period. Furthermore, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake valued at about $14,367,000. Currently, institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 81.38% of Gen Digital's stock.

About Gen Digital

Gen Digital Inc. specializes in providing cybersecurity solutions for consumers across various regions including the United States, Canada, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific, and Japan. The company offers various security and performance products under prominent brands like Norton, Avast, Avira, AVG, and CCleaner, ensuring real-time protection and maintenance for PCs, Macs, and mobile devices against threats such as malware and viruses.

Further Insights

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