HighPoint Advisor Group LLC Takes Position in Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ)

HighPoint Advisor Group LLC acquired a new stake in Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 3,069 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $254,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Montag A & Associates Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Block by 843.2% in the 4th quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 349 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 312 shares during the last quarter. Tidemark LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Block in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Vima LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Block in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Creekmur Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Block in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Cape Investment Advisory Inc. boosted its holdings in Block by 419.0% during the fourth quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 519 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 419 shares in the last quarter. 70.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Block Stock Up 0.3 %

SQ stock opened at $62.95 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Block, Inc. has a twelve month low of $38.85 and a twelve month high of $87.52. The company’s 50 day moving average is $68.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $71.69. The stock has a market cap of $38.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 81.75, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 2.54.

Block (NYSE:SQ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The technology company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.32. Block had a net margin of 2.18% and a return on equity of 2.04%. The company had revenue of $5.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.75 billion. Research analysts expect that Block, Inc. will post 1.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Block from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Block from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Block in a report on Friday, February 23rd. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $88.00 price target (up from $86.00) on shares of Block in a report on Friday, February 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Block from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twenty-seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Block has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $87.59.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 113,668 shares of Block stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.56, for a total value of $7,679,410.08. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 603,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $40,796,849.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Block news, CFO Amrita Ahuja sold 6,788 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.26, for a total value of $483,712.88. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 282,886 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,158,456.36. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 113,668 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.56, for a total transaction of $7,679,410.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 603,861 shares in the company, valued at $40,796,849.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 247,739 shares of company stock valued at $18,584,747 in the last ninety days. 10.49% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.