Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Buys 16,335 Shares of H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in shares of H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB) by 55.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 45,699 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 16,335 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in H&R Block were worth $2,210,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of H&R Block by 110.5% in the third quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,768,425 shares of the company’s stock worth $119,208,000 after acquiring an additional 1,453,504 shares during the period. Ibex Wealth Advisors bought a new position in H&R Block during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $9,438,000. NewEdge Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of H&R Block by 22.9% in the 3rd quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 1,007,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,394,000 after purchasing an additional 188,023 shares during the period. Tudor Investment Corp Et Al boosted its stake in shares of H&R Block by 1,134.3% in the 3rd quarter. Tudor Investment Corp Et Al now owns 170,879 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,358,000 after purchasing an additional 157,035 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP boosted its stake in shares of H&R Block by 198.1% in the 3rd quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 223,138 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,608,000 after purchasing an additional 148,274 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.14% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Jeffrey J. Jones II sold 85,921 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.21, for a total value of $4,228,172.41. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 755,359 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,171,216.39. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on HRB. StockNews.com upgraded shares of H&R Block from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on H&R Block from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th.

H&R Block Stock Performance

H&R Block stock opened at $47.65 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $47.72 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.13, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.70. H&R Block, Inc. has a 52-week low of $28.83 and a 52-week high of $52.90.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported ($1.27) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.58) by $0.31. H&R Block had a net margin of 16.98% and a negative return on equity of 227.22%. The business had revenue of $179.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $169.45 million. During the same period last year, the company posted ($1.37) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that H&R Block, Inc. will post 4.25 EPS for the current year.

H&R Block Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 5th were paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 4th. H&R Block’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.26%.

About H&R Block

H&R Block, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides assisted income tax return preparation and do-it-yourself (DIY) tax return preparation services and products to the general public primarily in the United States, Canada, and Australia. It offers assisted income tax return preparation and related services through a system of retail offices operated directly by the company or its franchisees.