Gen Digital Reports 11% Revenue Growth as AI Threat Protection Drives Demand
The cybersecurity firm raised full-year guidance after beating Q1 expectations, with paid customers crossing 80 million for the 11th consecutive quarter.
Strong Quarter Exceeds Expectations
Gen Digital Inc. (GEN) reported first-quarter fiscal 2027 results that surpassed guidance, with bookings and revenue growing 11% year-over-year and non-GAAP earnings per share climbing 19% (earnings call, 2026-08-06). The cybersecurity company's paid customer base crossed 80 million, marking the 11th consecutive quarter of sequential growth.
CEO Vincent Pilette attributed the performance to rising consumer anxiety about AI-driven threats. "AI adoption has passed 40% of U.S. consumers, yet nearly 2/3 are highly concerned about AI misusing their data, and that number is still rising," Pilette said on the call.
AI Threats Fuel Product Demand
The company's proprietary scam protection engine blocked over 500 million scam attacks during the quarter, "more than 100 every second, including deep fake and voice clones" (earnings call, 2026-08-06). Gen's consumer research indicates that over 60% of consumers say AI-driven scams make them more likely to pay for protection, representing the company's strongest measured purchase driver.
The Cyber Safety segment, which includes Norton and Avast brands, grew bookings and revenue at mid-single-digit rates. Norton's higher-tier memberships combining scam detection, identity restoration, and financial protection scaled to nearly $500 million in annualized bookings. Cross-sell penetration reached 27%, up one percentage point, with sales growing double digits year-over-year.
Trust-Based Solutions Accelerate
The Trust-Based Solutions segment showed stronger momentum, with bookings growing 25%. This segment includes LifeLock identity protection and the MoneyLion personal financial management platform acquired in fiscal 2025.
MoneyLion exceeded growth expectations, with two-thirds of its personal financial management revenue coming from repeat customers. The company's Engine embedded marketplace surpassed $500 million in annual revenue run rate, its strongest quarter yet, after adding more than 30 new partnerships and launching an insurance vertical.
Connected financial accounts reached 110 million, up from 75 million at the time of the MoneyLion acquisition. "35% of our paid base now engages with financial wellness," Pilette noted, with Engine-enabled cross-sell into the installed base "on track to double by the end of fiscal '27" (earnings call, 2026-08-06).
Raised Guidance Reflects Momentum
Based on Q1 outperformance, Gen Digital raised its full-year fiscal 2027 guidance to 9%-11% revenue growth and 14%-18% non-GAAP EPS growth, up from previous guidance of 8%-10% revenue growth and mid-teens EPS growth provided three months earlier.
CFO Natalie Derse began commentary on the revised outlook but was cut off in the provided transcript excerpt.
The company maintained segment operating margins above 60% for Cyber Safety and at 30% for Trust-Based Solutions despite growth investments. Pilette emphasized that "profit per employee already amongst the highest at our scale is up double digits" following a restructuring that enabled faster decision-making (earnings call, 2026-08-06).
According to MarginX data, Gen Digital has a market capitalization of approximately $17 billion, with shares last closing at $29.17. Recent insider activity includes a sale of 100,000 shares by Ondrej Vlcek and a purchase of 3,000 shares by John C. Chrystal.
This article was generated by MarginX from the earnings call on 2026-08-06. It is not investment advice.