UPDATE: Bank of America Reiterates on Symantec as 5/30 Plan is Unlikely to Succeed

In a report published Tuesday, Bank of America analyst Nikolay Beliov reiterated an Underperform rating on Symantec SYMC, but lowered the price target from $21.00 to $18.00. In the report, Bank of America noted, “Our ‘Myth Busters' series attempts to cut through common misperceptions on Wall Street about contentious stocks. We applaud the depth and breadth of the changes Symantec has embarked on to transform itself. However, following this deep dive, we come away believing that the 5/30 plan is unlikely to succeed. The current share of $21 price implies a 60% chance of success, which while down from a 100% chance implied by $27/share, is still optimistic in our view. " Our new $18 PO is now based on a 25% probability of the plan's success vs 50% previously given our lower level of confidence. We believe the new CFO Thomas Seifert (starting on Mar. 17) could use the context of FY14/15 as transition years to reset expectations and lay out a more realistic plan, likely during the May 29 analyst day.” Symantec Corporation closed on Monday at $20.56.