Block (NYSE:XYZ) Price Target Lowered to $74.00 at Raymond James

Block (NYSE:XYZ) had its price target trimmed by Raymond James from $103.00 to $74.00 in a research note released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the technology company’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Block in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $52.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Block from $94.00 to $74.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Block from $98.00 to $97.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 21st. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Block from $94.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Block from $105.00 to $80.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $80.03.

Block Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE XYZ opened at $46.57 on Friday. Block has a 52-week low of $44.27 and a 52-week high of $99.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 2.07 and a current ratio of 2.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.85 billion, a PE ratio of 10.24, a P/E/G ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 2.77. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $56.86.

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

Insider Activity at Block

In other Block news, CFO Amrita Ahuja sold 6,345 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.32, for a total value of $446,180.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 235,854 shares in the company, valued at $16,585,253.28. This represents a 2.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 4,520 shares of Block stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.32, for a total value of $317,846.40. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 551,850 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,806,092. This represents a 0.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 19,324 shares of company stock worth $1,297,662. Insiders own 10.49% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Block

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Block by 67.7% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 394 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 159 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in 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 period. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton lifted its position in Block by 18.3% during the fourth quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 982 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Ulland Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Block by 92.3% during the fourth quarter. Ulland Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,135 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $181,000 after acquiring an additional 1,025 shares during the period. Finally, Simon Quick Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Block in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $203,000. 70.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.