Block Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:SQ)

Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ) saw unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Stock traders purchased 92,851 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 33% compared to the average volume of 69,776 call options.

Block Stock Down 1.9 %

SQ opened at $89.04 on Wednesday. Block has a fifty-two week low of $55.00 and a fifty-two week high of $94.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.02, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 2.48. The company’s 50-day moving average is $74.76 and its 200 day moving average is $68.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 2.07.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on shares of Block from $95.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $88.00 price target on shares of Block in a research note on Monday, October 21st. BMO Capital Markets lowered Block from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $94.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on Block from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Block from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twenty-three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $91.46.

Insider Transactions at Block

In other news, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.00, for a total transaction of $33,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 90,460 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,060,820. The trade was a 0.55 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Amrita Ahuja sold 6,661 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.43, for a total value of $609,015.23. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 246,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,580,192.81. This represents a 2.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 29,053 shares of company stock valued at $2,393,972. 10.49% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Block

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. SouthState Corp raised its holdings in shares of Block by 85.3% in the 3rd quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 391 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC grew its stake in Block by 64.7% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 494 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in Block during the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Block during the second quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Block in the second quarter valued at $44,000. 70.44% of the stock is currently owned by 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.