Block (NYSE:XYZ) Upgraded at BMO Capital Markets

BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Block (NYSE:XYZ) from a market perform rating to an outperform rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. BMO Capital Markets currently has $89.00 price objective on the technology company’s stock, down from their previous price objective of $100.00.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Block from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Oppenheimer raised shares of Block from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $115.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Block from $90.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Block from $109.00 to $94.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Block from $100.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $96.31.

Block Stock Up 3.9 %

Shares of XYZ opened at $65.29 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 2.07. Block has a twelve month low of $55.00 and a twelve month high of $99.26. The company has a market cap of $40.47 billion, a PE ratio of 14.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 2.53.

Block (NYSE:XYZ) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The technology company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by ($0.11). Block had a net margin of 11.92% and a return on equity of 5.80%. The business had revenue of $6.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.23 billion. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Block will post 2.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Block

In other Block news, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 3,253 shares of Block stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.01, for a total value of $221,236.53. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 548,597 shares in the company, valued at $37,310,081.97. The trade was a 0.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Chrysty Esperanza sold 2,865 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total value of $272,175.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 85,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,097,325. The trade was a 3.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 24,832 shares of company stock valued at $1,921,288 in the last ninety days. 10.49% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Block

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC boosted its position in Block by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC now owns 8,340 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $709,000 after buying an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in shares of Block by 48.2% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 418 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV boosted its holdings in shares of Block by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 7,744 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $520,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Block by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 26,864 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,283,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton increased its holdings in Block by 18.3% in the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 982 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $83,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. 70.44% of the stock is 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.