Legal & General Group Plc Sells 16,789 Shares of H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB)

Legal & General Group Plc lowered its stake in shares of H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB) by 5.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 283,643 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16,789 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc’s holdings in H&R Block were worth $14,988,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HRB. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in shares of H&R Block during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Spire Wealth Management acquired a new position in H&R Block during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in H&R Block during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of H&R Block by 64.5% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 658 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its stake in shares of H&R Block by 52.6% in the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 838 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.14% of the company’s stock.

H&R Block Stock Performance

NYSE:HRB opened at $61.51 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $53.96 and its 200-day moving average is $56.26. The company has a market cap of $8.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.94, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.46, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.73. H&R Block, Inc. has a 52-week low of $45.87 and a 52-week high of $68.45.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported ($1.73) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.59) by ($0.14). H&R Block had a net margin of 14.71% and a negative return on equity of 179.15%. Equities research analysts anticipate that H&R Block, Inc. will post 5.25 earnings per share for the current year.

H&R Block Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th were given a $0.375 dividend. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 4th. H&R Block’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HRB has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $70.00 target price on shares of H&R Block in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. StockNews.com cut H&R Block from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th.

H&R Block Company Profile

H&R Block, Inc engages in the provision of tax return preparation solutions, financial products and small business solutions. The company was founded by Henry W. Bloch and Richard A. Bloch on January 25, 1955, and is headquartered in Kansas City, MO.