Block, Inc. (NYSE:XYZ) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Block, Inc. (NYSE:XYZ) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-eight brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $79.22.

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on XYZ. Piper Sandler downgraded Block from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $85.00 to $51.00 in a research note on Friday. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating and set a $58.00 price objective on shares of Block in a research report on Friday. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Block from $94.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Block from $97.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Benchmark cut Block from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday.

Block Stock Performance

XYZ opened at $46.57 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $56.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.85 billion, a PE ratio of 10.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 2.77. Block has a fifty-two week low of $44.27 and a fifty-two week high of $99.26. The company has a quick ratio of 2.07, a current ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Block (NYSE:XYZ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The technology company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $6.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.23 billion. Block had a net margin of 11.92% and a return on equity of 5.80%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Block will post 2.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 500 shares of Block stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.48, for a total value of $27,240.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 81,999 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,467,305.52. This trade represents a 0.61 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Owen Britton Jennings sold 1,263 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.19, for a total value of $70,967.97. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 181,904 shares in the company, valued at $10,221,185.76. This trade represents a 0.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 19,324 shares of company stock valued at $1,297,662. 10.49% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Block

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its position in Block by 38.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 9,893 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $664,000 after buying an additional 2,728 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Block by 18.6% in the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 10,174 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $683,000 after acquiring an additional 1,593 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Block by 67.7% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 394 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Block by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,493 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $212,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the period. Finally, Everence Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Block in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,129,000. 70.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Block

Square, Inc provides payment and point-of-sale solutions in the United States and internationally. The company's commerce ecosystem includes point-of-sale software and hardware that enables sellers to turn mobile and computing devices into payment and point-of-sale solutions. It offers hardware products, including Magstripe reader, which enables swiped transactions of magnetic stripe cards; Contactless and chip reader that accepts EMV® chip cards and Near Field Communication payments; Chip card reader, which accepts EMV® chip cards and enables swiped transactions of magnetic stripe cards; Square Stand, which enables an iPad to be used as a payment terminal or full point of sale solution; and Square Register that combines its hardware, point-of-sale software, and payments technology, as well as managed payments solutions.