Block (NYSE:SQ) Earns Neutral Rating from Analysts at New Street Research

Stock analysts at New Street Research started coverage on shares of Block (NYSE:SQ) in a report issued on Monday, MarketBeat reports. The firm set a “neutral” rating and a $70.00 price target on the technology company’s stock. New Street Research’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 14.03% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on SQ. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Block from $82.00 to $74.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Block from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $88.00 target price on shares of Block in a report on Friday, August 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 target price on shares of Block in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Finally, Susquehanna reissued a “positive” rating and set a $100.00 price target on shares of Block in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, twenty-five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $86.93.

Block Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SQ opened at $61.39 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $64.16 and its 200 day moving average is $69.59. The stock has a market cap of $37.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 79.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 2.49. Block has a 1-year low of $38.85 and a 1-year high of $87.52. The company has a current ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Block (NYSE:SQ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The technology company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.09. Block had a net margin of 3.47% and a return on equity of 3.77%. The firm had revenue of $6.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.27 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.40 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Block will post 1.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Roelof Botha purchased 434,405 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $57.55 per share, with a total value of $25,000,007.75. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 434,405 shares in the company, valued at $25,000,007.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, Director Roelof Botha acquired 434,405 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $57.55 per share, for a total transaction of $25,000,007.75. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 434,405 shares in the company, valued at $25,000,007.75. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 471 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.37, for a total value of $30,318.27. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 92,866 shares in the company, valued at $5,977,784.42. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 28,179 shares of company stock worth $1,833,962 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 10.49% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Block

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SQ. Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in Block during the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Tidemark LLC bought a new position in shares of Block during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Block in the 1st quarter worth $33,000. Vima LLC bought a new stake in shares of Block in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Block during the first quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors own 70.44% of the company’s stock.

Block Company Profile

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.