Insider Trading February 19, 2026

Gen Digital CFO Sells Shares After ESPP Purchase; Company Posts Q3 Beat and Sees Ratings Outlook Stabilize

Natalie Derse sold 794 shares following an Employee Stock Purchase Plan acquisition; Gen Digital reported slightly stronger-than-expected third-quarter results and received a revised outlook from Fitch

By Caleb Monroe GEN
Gen Digital CFO Sells Shares After ESPP Purchase; Company Posts Q3 Beat and Sees Ratings Outlook Stabilize
GEN

Gen Digital Inc. Chief Financial Officer Natalie Marie Derse sold 794 shares of company common stock on February 17, 2026, after acquiring the same number of shares through the firm’s Employee Stock Purchase Plan two days earlier. The company reported third-quarter fiscal 2026 results that modestly exceeded analyst forecasts and saw its credit outlook from Fitch Ratings move from negative to stable while several debt instruments were affirmed.

Key Points

  • Gen Digital CFO Natalie Marie Derse sold 794 shares on Feb. 17, 2026, for $23.62 per share, totaling $18,754.
  • Derse had purchased 794 shares two days earlier through the company’s Employee Stock Purchase Plan at $20.162 per share and now holds 456,678 shares directly.
  • Gen Digital’s Q3 fiscal 2026 results slightly exceeded expectations with $0.64 in diluted EPS and $1.24 billion in revenue; Fitch revised the company’s outlook to stable from negative and affirmed multiple debt ratings.

Natalie Marie Derse, Chief Financial Officer of Gen Digital Inc. (NASDAQ: GEN), completed a sale of 794 shares of common stock on February 17, 2026, at $23.62 per share, generating $18,754 in proceeds.

A Form 4 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission shows that Derse had previously acquired 794 shares on February 15, 2026, through Gen Digital’s Employee Stock Purchase Plan at a per-share price of $20.162. Following the February 17 sale, Derse now directly holds 456,678 shares of the company’s common stock.


Company results and credit actions

In related corporate developments, Gen Digital reported third-quarter results for fiscal 2026 that marginally outperformed analyst expectations. The company recorded diluted earnings per share of $0.64 versus a $0.63 consensus, and reported revenue of $1.24 billion compared with a projection of $1.2 billion.

Credit agency Fitch Ratings revised its outlook on Gen Digital to stable from negative, while maintaining the company’s Long-Term Issuer Default Rating at 'BB+'. Fitch also affirmed several specific debt instruments: the company’s first lien senior secured term loans and secured revolver at 'BBB-' with a Recovery Rating of 'RR1', and its senior unsecured notes at 'BB+' with a Recovery Rating of 'RR4'.


Additional market note

The filing and corporate updates were published alongside a separate analyst action affecting Genco Shipping & Trading Limited. Alliance Global Partners downgraded Genco from a buy rating to neutral, with analyst C. K. Poe Fratt pointing to the stock’s strong recent performance and diminished upside potential as factors in the decision. The firm also noted doubts about the success of a current buyout offer and about DSX’s efforts to replace the board.


These disclosures and analyst commentary provide investors with detail on executive transactions, recent operating results and credit agency evaluations for Gen Digital, as well as a contemporaneous rating adjustment in the shipping sector. The filings do not include additional commentary from company representatives about the insider transaction or the potential market reaction to the results and ratings actions.

Risks

  • The filing does not specify the motivation behind the near-term purchase and subsequent sale of identical share quantities, leaving the transaction’s signaling to investors unclear - impacting equity market interpretation.
  • While Fitch moved Gen Digital’s outlook to stable and affirmed specific ratings and recovery ratings, the company’s debt instruments retain the ratings listed by Fitch, which continue to be material considerations for credit and fixed-income investors.
  • Alliance Global Partners’ downgrade of Genco Shipping & Trading Limited and expressed doubts about a buyout offer and board replacement efforts introduce uncertainty for stakeholders in that company and related shipping-sector investors.

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