Block (NYSE:XYZ) Cut to Hold at Zacks Research

Zacks Research downgraded shares of Block (NYSE:XYZ) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on XYZ. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Block in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Block in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Macquarie upped their price objective on Block from $50.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Block from $60.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Block to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $82.58.

Block Trading Down 0.5%

NYSE:XYZ opened at $65.61 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.23, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 2.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 2.18 and a quick ratio of 2.18. Block has a one year low of $44.27 and a one year high of $99.26. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $75.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $70.08.

Block (NYSE:XYZ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The technology company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.29. Block had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 7.41%. The business had revenue of $6.11 billion during the quarter. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.53 EPS. Block’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Block will post 2.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Block

In related news, insider Chrysty Esperanza sold 3,609 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.20, for a total value of $264,178.80. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 127,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,311,918.40. This represents a 2.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 35,145 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $2,811,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 535,896 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,871,680. The trade was a 6.15% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 119,041 shares of company stock worth $9,052,531 in the last three months. 10.85% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Block

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of XYZ. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Block during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,055,000. Lane Generational LLC purchased a new stake in Block in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $6,043,000. Bessemer Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Block during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $62,389,000. Cidel Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Block during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $311,000. Finally, OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Block during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $6,094,000. 70.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.