Sifting through countless of stocks in the Software industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in Circle Internet Group, Inc. or Gen Digital Inc. because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how Circle Internet Group, Inc. and Gen Digital Inc. compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About Circle Internet Group, Inc. and Gen Digital Inc.

Circle Internet Group, Inc. operates as a platform, network, and market infrastructure for stablecoin and blockchain applications. The company provides various platform including Arc Blockchain and Developer Infrastructure, an open, layer-1 blockchain network purpose-built to bring real world economic activity onchain; Circle Digital Assets and Services, which includes circle digital assets, USDC, EURC, and USYC, as well as circle mint and xreserve, related liquidity, custody, and trust infrastructure; and Circle Applications, which includes circle payments network and stablefx, applications that use circle digital assets to deliver real-world utility on the arc network and across the broader multichain ecosystem. Its stablecoins network comprises circle stablecoins, tokenized funds, liquidity, payments network, and developer services, as well as integration services. The company was founded in 2013 and is based in New York, New York.

Gen Digital Inc. engages in the provision of cyber safety and trust-based solutions for individuals, families, and small businesses. The company offers security and performance management, identity protection, and online privacy, as well as technology platforms. It also provides restoration support services, digital reputation, and secure financial wellness. The company offers its products under the Norton, Avast, LifeLock, MoneyLion, Avira, AVG, ReputationDefender, and CCleaner brands. The company was formerly known as NortonLifeLock Inc. and changed its name to Gen Digital Inc. in November 2022. Gen Digital Inc. was founded in 1982 and is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.

Latest Software and Circle Internet Group, Inc., Gen Digital Inc. Stock News

As of July 31, 2026, Circle Internet Group, Inc. had a $15.6 billion market capitalization, compared to the Software median of $977.4 million. Circle Internet Group, Inc.’s stock is down 21% in 2026, up 0.4% in the previous five trading days and down 67.13% in the past year.

Currently, Circle Internet Group, Inc. does not have a price-earnings ratio. Circle Internet Group, Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $2.9 billion with a -2.8% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 20.0%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $1.355 per share for the current fiscal year. Circle Internet Group, Inc. does not currently pay a dividend.

As of July 31, 2026, Gen Digital Inc. had a $16.4 billion market cap, putting it in the 84th percentile of all stocks. Gen Digital Inc.’s stock is up 1% in 2026, up 6.2% in the previous five trading days and down 8.01% in the past year.

Currently, Gen Digital Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 17.5. Gen Digital Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $5.0 billion with a 19.5% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 27.0%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $2.896 per share for the current fiscal year. Gen Digital Inc. currently has a 1.8% dividend yield.

How We Compare Circle Internet Group, Inc. and Gen Digital Inc. Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at Circle Internet Group, Inc. and Gen Digital Inc.’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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Circle Internet Group, Inc. and Gen Digital Inc. Growth Grades

Company	Ticker	Growth
Circle Internet Group, Inc.	CRCL	D
Gen Digital Inc.	GEN	A

The foundation of growth investing is seeking out stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth that is expected to continue into the future.

In order to compute the growth score and assign it a letter grade, the percentile ranks for each of three components‐consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations‐must be determined. These three rank figures are added together, and the sum is ranked against the entire stock universe to arrive at a company’s Growth Score to create an equal distribution of grades.

The companies in the bottom 20% of the stock universe receive Growth Grades of F, considered to be very weak, while those in the top 20% receive A grades, which are considered very strong.

Circle Internet Group, Inc. has a Growth Score of 37, which is Weak. Gen Digital Inc. has a Growth Score of 89, which is Very Strong.

The Growth Grade Winner: Gen Digital Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Growth Grade breakdown above, Gen Digital Inc. has a more attractive growth grade than Circle Internet Group, Inc.. For investors who focus solely on how a company is growing relative to other companies in the same industry, Gen Digital Inc. could be a good stock to add to their portfolio. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Circle Internet Group, Inc. and Gen Digital Inc.’s Quality Grades

Company	Ticker	Quality
Circle Internet Group, Inc.	CRCL	F
Gen Digital Inc.	GEN	B

Like the Value Grade, AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the percentile rank of key metrics. Specifically, the Quality Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and the F-Score.

The score is variable, meaning it can consider all eight measures or, should any of the eight measures not be valid, the remaining measures that are valid. To be assigned a Quality Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) measure and corresponding ranking for at least four of the eight quality measures.

The Quality Score is used to assess the underlying “quality” of a particular stock. A higher-quality stock possesses traits associated with upside potential and reduced downside risk. Backtesting of the Quality Grade shows that stocks with higher grades, on average, outperformed stocks with lower grades over the period of 1998 through 2019.

Stocks receive better grades (higher scores) for having higher scores for the quality subcomponents and worse grades (lower scores) for lower scores for the subcomponents.

Circle Internet Group, Inc. has a Quality Score of 1, which is Very Weak. Gen Digital Inc. has a Quality Score of 65, which is Strong.

The Quality Grade Winner: Gen Digital Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Quality Grade breakdown above, Gen Digital Inc. has a better overall quality grade than Circle Internet Group, Inc.. For investors who are looking for companies with higher quality than others in the same industry, Gen Digital Inc. could be a good stock to add to their portfolios. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Circle Internet Group, Inc. and Gen Digital Inc.’s Estimate Revisions Grades

Company	Ticker	Earnings Estimate
Circle Internet Group, Inc.	CRCL	B
Gen Digital Inc.	GEN	C

Earnings estimate revisions scores consider the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, positive surprises beget further positive surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Estimate revisions offer an indication of what analysts are thinking about the short-term prospects of a firm. Estimate revisions are based on the statistical significance of a firm’s last two quarterly earnings surprises and the percentage change in its consensus estimate for the current fiscal year over the past month and past three months.

Circle Internet Group, Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 78, which is Positive. Gen Digital Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 53, which is Neutral.

The Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade Winner: Circle Internet Group, Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade breakdown above, Circle Internet Group, Inc. has a better Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade than Gen Digital Inc.. For those who are specifically looking for companies with better short-term prospects when compared to other companies in the same industry, Circle Internet Group, Inc. could be a good stock to invest in. However, it’s important to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Other Circle Internet Group, Inc. and Gen Digital Inc. Grades

In addition to Growth, Quality and Estimate Revisions, A+ Investor also provides grades for Value and Momentum.

Momentum grades help uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming.

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection. Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether Circle Internet Group, Inc. and Gen Digital Inc. pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, Circle Internet Group, Inc. or Gen Digital Inc. Stock?

Overall, Circle Internet Group, Inc. stock has a Growth Score of 37, Estimate Revisions Score of 78 and Quality Score of 1.

Gen Digital Inc. stock has a Growth Score of 89, Estimate Revisions Score of 53 and Quality Score of 65.

Comparing Circle Internet Group, Inc. and Gen Digital Inc.’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.