Why Shares Of Symantec (SYMC) Rallied In The Last 30 Days?

It’s been month since Symantec Corp. (NASDAQ:SYMC) has reported first-quarter fiscal 2017 results. Post the release, the stock has been on the rise. To some investors, choosing the stock may appear to be a no-brainer because, right after an earnings release, a company is almost always on investors’ radar. While better-than- expected results make the stock a good pick, lower-than-expected results dampen investors’ spirit. So, the period following earnings releases is often marked by high market activity.

Shares Marching Higher

Symantec reported its quarterly numbers on Aug 4, following which its shares have gained approximately 15.5%. The company’s earnings and revenues outperformed estimates in the quarter. The Norton anti-virus developer reported adjusted earnings (including stock-based compensation but excluding amortization and other one-time items) per share of 23 cents, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 20 cents.

Net revenue came in at $884 million, above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $878 million as well as the mid-point of the company’s own guidance range of $865 million to $895 million (mid-point: $880 million).

An upbeat guidance for fiscal 2017 further drove the estimates upward. Symantec raised the revenues guidance to the range of $4.040–$4.120 billion from its previous projection of $3.49–$3.58 billion, while the non-GAAP earnings forecast was raised to $1.08–$1.14 from $1.06–$1.10 per share.

Restructuring Initiatives

Of late, Symantec’s top and bottom line has been under pressure due to persistent weakness in PC sales, which particularly hurt its core Norton Anti-virus software business. Apart from this, intensifying competition from Palo Alto Networks, FireEye Inc. and Check Point Software has also been eroding its market share in the enterprise segment.

As a result, the company has been singularly focused on restructuring its business. In doing so, on Jan 29, 2016, Symantec closed the sale of the Veritas business to Carlyle Group (NASDAQ:CG) for $7.4 billion. We believe that the deal provided Symantec with much needed funds to continue expanding its product portfolio as well as its presence in the fast growing markets.

Symantec also completed the acquisition of Blue Coat, which will enable it to reduce its dependence on the PC market and strengthen its position in the enterprise security space. Revenues from the enterprise security segment are now expected to contribute 62% to the company’s top line.

We expect these restructuring initiatives and acquisitions to contribute significantly to this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) stock’s overall growth.

Stocks to Consider

Some stocks in the broader technology sector worth considering are Datalink Corporation (NASDAQ:DTLK) , Seagate Technology Plc (NASDAQ:STX) and Cirrus Logic Inc. (NASDAQ:CRUS) , all of which sport a Zacks Rank #1.

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