Scotia Capital Inc. Sells 1,966 Shares of Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ)

Scotia Capital Inc. decreased its holdings in Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ – Get Rating) by 16.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,155 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 1,966 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc.’s holdings in Block were worth $638,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Oxler Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in Block by 95.7% during the 3rd quarter. Oxler Private Wealth LLC now owns 460 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares during the period. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Block by 72.5% during the 4th quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 476 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. bought a new position in Block during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Hollencrest Capital Management bought a new position in Block during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Accurate Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Block during the 4th quarter worth $41,000. Institutional investors own 59.49% of the company’s stock.

Block Stock Performance

Shares of SQ stock opened at $58.65 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $64.16 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $68.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Block, Inc. has a 52 week low of $51.34 and a 52 week high of $93.19.

Block (NYSE:SQ – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 4th. The technology company reported $0.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.11) by $0.17. Block had a negative net margin of 1.92% and a negative return on equity of 1.22%. The company had revenue of $4.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.58 billion. As a group, research analysts predict that Block, Inc. will post -0.05 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Alyssa Henry sold 30,769 shares of Block stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.30, for a total transaction of $2,378,443.70. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 418,667 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,362,959.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Amrita Ahuja sold 4,046 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.00, for a total transaction of $271,082.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 241,460 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,177,820. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Alyssa Henry sold 30,769 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.30, for a total transaction of $2,378,443.70. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 418,667 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $32,362,959.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 318,130 shares of company stock valued at $21,650,400 in the last ninety days. 11.52% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on SQ. KeyCorp lowered their price objective on Block from $100.00 to $85.00 in a research note on Monday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Block from $90.00 to $80.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 12th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Block from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 24th. Wedbush raised Block from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $114.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, March 24th. Finally, BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Block in a report on Tuesday, February 28th. They issued an “underperform” rating on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and twenty-two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $97.71.

Block Profile

(Get Rating)

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.