APP vs. GEN: AppLovin vs. Gen Digital Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do AppLovin (APP) and Gen Digital (GEN) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

AppLovin (APP) and Gen Digital (GEN) both belong to the Software industry, though APP is classified under Application Software while GEN falls under Systems Software.

Gen Digital (GEN) has more than two decades of public-market history since June 23, 1989, whereas AppLovin (APP) listed on April 15, 2021 and has a much shorter record to draw on.

Company profile comparison for AppLovin (APP) and Gen Digital (GEN)
Profile Item	APP	GEN
Name	AppLovin Corporation Class A Common Stock	Gen Digital Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Information Technology	Information Technology
GICS Industry Group	Software & Services	Software & Services
GICS Industry	Software	Software
GICS Sub-Industry	Application Software	Systems Software
Market Capitalization	129.62 billion USD	17.67 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	Nasdaq	Nasdaq
Listing Date	April 15, 2021	June 23, 1989
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

APP

GEN

GSPC

AppLovin (APP) vs. Gen Digital (GEN), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for AppLovin (APP) and Gen Digital (GEN). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for AppLovin (APP) and Gen Digital (GEN). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for AppLovin (APP) and Gen Digital (GEN)
Metric	APP	GEN
Total Return (1Y)	-34.71%	18.20%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	116.87%	18.57%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	31.34%	5.70%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

APP

GEN

GSPC

AppLovin (APP) vs. Gen Digital (GEN), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for AppLovin (APP) and Gen Digital (GEN). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

AppLovin (APP) carries a highly aggressive beta of 2.25, indicating much higher sensitivity to broad-market moves, whereas Gen Digital (GEN) is closer to market-like at 1.23 — a noticeable difference in market-sensitivity profile.

Risk profile metrics for AppLovin (APP) and Gen Digital (GEN)
Metric	APP	GEN
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	80.36%	43.30%
Beta (5Y)	2.25	1.23
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-91.90%	-48.41%
Avg. Volume (3M)	5.33M	8.39M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

APP and GEN are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for AppLovin (APP) and Gen Digital (GEN)
Metric	APP	GEN
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	-0.49	0.32
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	-0.69	0.50

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both companies show strong equity returns, but AppLovin (APP) at 210.09% is the standout with ROE above its industry range; Gen Digital (GEN) at 46.40% also sits in the top quartile.

APP

Software & Services industry group

210.09%

APP: 210.09%
Max: 53.85%
Q3: 17.90%
Median: 6.59%
Q1: -9.59%
Min: -50.52%

GEN

Software & Services industry group

46.40%

Max: 53.85%
GEN: 46.40%
Q3: 17.90%
Median: 6.59%
Q1: -9.59%
Min: -50.52%

AppLovin (APP) vs. Gen Digital (GEN): A comparison of their ROE against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

AppLovin (APP) at 65.89% keeps the most of each sales dollar — above its industry’s net margin range — and Gen Digital (GEN) at 23.07% also retains a top-quartile share.

APP

Software & Services industry group

65.89%

APP: 65.89%
Max: 41.17%
Q3: 15.28%
Median: 4.63%
Q1: -5.42%
Min: -33.17%

GEN

Software & Services industry group

23.07%

Max: 41.17%
GEN: 23.07%
Q3: 15.28%
Median: 4.63%
Q1: -5.42%
Min: -33.17%

AppLovin (APP) vs. Gen Digital (GEN): A comparison of their net margin against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

AppLovin (APP) at 78.22% shows unusually strong operating efficiency — above its industry’s operating margin range — and Gen Digital (GEN) at 37.40% also operates in the top quartile.

APP

Software & Services industry group

78.22%

APP: 78.22%
Max: 46.89%
Q3: 17.64%
Median: 8.73%
Q1: -2.13%
Min: -30.45%

GEN

Software & Services industry group

37.40%

Max: 46.89%
GEN: 37.40%
Q3: 17.64%
Median: 8.73%
Q1: -2.13%
Min: -30.45%

AppLovin (APP) vs. Gen Digital (GEN): A comparison of their operating margin against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for AppLovin (APP) and Gen Digital (GEN)
Metric	APP	GEN
ROE (TTM)	210.09%	46.40%
ROA (TTM)	49.57%	8.94%
Net Margin (TTM)	65.89%	23.07%
Operating Margin (TTM)	78.22%	37.40%
Gross Margin (TTM)	88.78%	77.41%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both companies are growing quickly, but AppLovin (APP) at 69.99% is the standout with revenue growth above its industry range; Gen Digital (GEN) at 27.06% also sits in the top quartile.

AppLovin (APP) vs. Gen Digital (GEN): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both AppLovin (APP) at 115.23% and Gen Digital (GEN) at 52.43% sit in the top peer quartile for EPS growth, so each is compounding per-share earnings faster than typical industry peers.

AppLovin (APP) vs. Gen Digital (GEN): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for AppLovin (APP) and Gen Digital (GEN)
Metric	APP	GEN
Revenue Growth (YoY)	69.99%	27.06%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	24.84%	14.66%
EPS Growth (YoY)	115.23%	52.43%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	--	-10.09%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

AppLovin (APP) at 3.81 carries current ratio above its industry’s typical mid-range, while Gen Digital (GEN) at 0.37 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — different working-capital profiles, both worth examining.

APP

Software & Services industry group

3.81

Max: 5.11
APP: 3.81
Q3: 2.77
Median: 1.67
Q1: 1.01
Min: 0.03

GEN

Software & Services industry group

0.37

Max: 5.11
Q3: 2.77
Median: 1.67
Q1: 1.01
GEN: 0.37
Min: 0.03

AppLovin (APP) vs. Gen Digital (GEN): A comparison of their current ratio against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

AppLovin (APP) at 1.07 is near its industry mid-range for debt-to-equity ratio, while Gen Digital (GEN) at 2.96 sits above its benchmark range, pointing to a heavier debt load relative to equity.

APP

Software & Services industry group

1.07

Max: 2.52
Q3: 1.13
APP: 1.07
Median: 0.40
Q1: 0.07
Min: 0.00

GEN

Software & Services industry group

2.96

GEN: 2.96
Max: 2.52
Q3: 1.13
Median: 0.40
Q1: 0.07
Min: 0.00

AppLovin (APP) vs. Gen Digital (GEN): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for AppLovin (APP) and Gen Digital (GEN)
Metric	APP	GEN
Current Ratio (MRQ)	3.81	0.37
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	1.07	2.96
Net Debt / EBITDA	0.06	3.02

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

AppLovin (APP) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Gen Digital (GEN) reports a yield of 1.63%, ranking against industry peers normally.

APP

Software & Services industry group

0.00%

APP: 0.00%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

GEN

Software & Services industry group

1.63%

GEN: 1.63%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

AppLovin (APP) vs. Gen Digital (GEN): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

AppLovin (APP) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Gen Digital (GEN) reports a payout of 25.38%, ranking against industry peers normally.

APP

Software & Services industry group

0.00%

APP: 0.00%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

GEN

Software & Services industry group

25.38%

GEN: 25.38%
Max: 0.00%
Q3: 0.00%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

AppLovin (APP) vs. Gen Digital (GEN): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for AppLovin (APP) and Gen Digital (GEN)
Metric	APP	GEN
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.00%	1.63%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	0.00%	25.38%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Gen Digital (GEN) at 15.12 sits in the cheaper P/E ratio quartile, while AppLovin (APP) at 26.34 is closer to its industry’s usual earnings multiple — a discount for GEN, though growth and earnings durability still matter.

APP

Software & Services industry group

26.34

Max: 112.94
Q3: 60.32
Median: 32.91
APP: 26.34
Q1: 18.77
Min: 6.69

GEN

Software & Services industry group

15.12

Max: 112.94
Q3: 60.32
Median: 32.91
Q1: 18.77
GEN: 15.12
Min: 6.69

AppLovin (APP) vs. Gen Digital (GEN): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Gen Digital (GEN) at 3.38 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while AppLovin (APP) at 17.04 sits in the pricier quartile — APP costs more per dollar of sales.

APP

Software & Services industry group

17.04

Max: 17.91
APP: 17.04
Q3: 8.78
Median: 4.25
Q1: 2.23
Min: 0.02

GEN

Software & Services industry group

3.38

Max: 17.91
Q3: 8.78
Median: 4.25
GEN: 3.38
Q1: 2.23
Min: 0.02

AppLovin (APP) vs. Gen Digital (GEN): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Gen Digital (GEN) at 6.45 sits near its industry’s typical P/B ratio, while AppLovin (APP) at 39.29 prices above its benchmark range — APP looks rich relative to book.

APP

Software & Services industry group

39.29

APP: 39.29
Max: 16.63
Q3: 8.50
Median: 4.30
Q1: 1.92
Min: -3.90

GEN

Software & Services industry group

6.45

Max: 16.63
Q3: 8.50
GEN: 6.45
Median: 4.30
Q1: 1.92
Min: -3.90

AppLovin (APP) vs. Gen Digital (GEN): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Software & Services industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for AppLovin (APP) and Gen Digital (GEN)
Metric	APP	GEN
P/E Ratio (TTM)	26.34	15.12
P/S Ratio (TTM)	17.04	3.38
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	39.29	6.45
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	2.87%	10.25%