Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the thirty-one research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have issued a hold recommendation, twenty-four have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $88.79.

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Macquarie restated an “outperform” rating and set a $100.00 price objective on shares of Block in a report on Friday, July 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $88.00 price objective on shares of Block in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 target price on shares of Block in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Susquehanna reaffirmed a “positive” rating and set a $100.00 price target on shares of Block in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Block from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd.

Insider Activity at Block

In other Block news, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.88, for a total value of $30,940.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 92,366 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,715,608.08. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Roelof Botha bought 434,405 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $57.55 per share, with a total value of $25,000,007.75. Following the purchase, the director now owns 434,405 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,000,007.75. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 500 shares of Block stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.88, for a total value of $30,940.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 92,366 shares in the company, valued at $5,715,608.08. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 25,214 shares of company stock valued at $1,637,932. Corporate insiders own 10.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SQ. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in Block in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Block in the first quarter worth $34,000. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new stake in Block in the second quarter valued at $34,000. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in Block in the first quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Creekmur Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Block during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. 70.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Block Stock Performance

SQ stock opened at $71.67 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $65.20 and a 200-day moving average of $67.34. The firm has a market cap of $44.12 billion, a PE ratio of 55.99, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 2.49. Block has a 12-month low of $38.85 and a 12-month high of $87.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.82, a current 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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $6.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.27 billion. Block had a return on equity of 3.77% and a net margin of 3.47%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.40 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Block will post 1.71 earnings per share for the current year.

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.