Block (NYSE:XYZ) Rating Increased to Buy at HSBC

HSBC upgraded shares of Block (NYSE:XYZ) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $77.00 price target on the technology company’s stock, up from their prior price target of $70.00.

XYZ has been the subject of a number of other reports. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of Block from a “hold” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $83.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on Block from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Block from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $95.00 target price on shares of Block in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $90.00 price target on shares of Block in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Block currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $82.79.

Block Trading Down 2.2%

Shares of NYSE XYZ opened at $63.03 on Tuesday. Block has a 12-month low of $44.27 and a 12-month high of $82.50. The company has a market cap of $38.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 2.65. The company has a current ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $61.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $67.94.

Block (NYSE:XYZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The technology company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $6.25 billion during the quarter. Block had a return on equity of 6.66% and a net margin of 5.40%.Block’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.71 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Block will post 2.54 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Block

In other news, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 10,349 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $517,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 503,784 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,189,200. This trade represents a 2.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Amrita Ahuja sold 1,101 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.98, for a total transaction of $70,441.98. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 271,864 shares in the company, valued at $17,393,858.72. The trade was a 0.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 16,797 shares of company stock worth $940,298. Corporate insiders own 10.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Block

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Howard Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Block by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,439 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $321,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its stake in Block by 23.1% during the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 853 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Block by 57.1% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 443 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 161 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in shares of Block by 0.8% in the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 21,183 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,561,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Block by 33.9% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 707 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.44% of the company’s stock.

About Block

Block (NYSE:XYZ) is a financial technology company that builds products and services to facilitate electronic payments, commerce, and consumer finance. Its principal business lines include a seller-focused ecosystem that provides point-of-sale hardware and software, payment processing, invoicing, payroll and lending services, and a consumer-facing platform that offers peer-to-peer payments, banking-like features, and investing. Block’s portfolio also encompasses music streaming and buy-now-pay-later capabilities through businesses acquired to broaden its reach beyond core payments.

The company was founded as Square in 2009 by Jack Dorsey and Jim McKelvey and later rebranded to Block to reflect a diversified set of businesses across payments, consumer finance, and emerging technologies.