Block (NYSE:SQ) Trading Down 0.7%

Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ)’s stock price dropped 0.7% on Friday . The company traded as low as $61.77 and last traded at $62.28. Approximately 1,148,334 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 88% from the average daily volume of 9,326,386 shares. The stock had previously closed at $62.74.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SQ has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of Block from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. 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 research note on Friday, May 3rd. Evercore ISI reiterated an “in-line” rating and set a $75.00 price target on shares of Block in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Susquehanna restated a “positive” rating and issued a $100.00 target price on shares of Block in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $60.00 target price (down previously from $62.00) on shares of Block in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twenty-seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $87.59.

Block Trading Up 0.4 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $38.86 billion, a PE ratio of 81.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 2.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $68.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $71.73.

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

Insider Transactions at Block

In other news, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 500 shares of Block stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.75, for a total transaction of $42,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 68,323 shares in the company, valued at $5,790,374.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.75, for a total value of $42,375.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 68,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,790,374.25. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Amrita Ahuja sold 6,788 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.26, for a total transaction of $483,712.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 282,886 shares in the company, valued at $20,158,456.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 247,739 shares of company stock worth $18,584,747 over the last ninety days. 10.49% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Block

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Montag A & Associates Inc. lifted its position in Block by 843.2% during the fourth quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 349 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 312 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in Block during the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Front Row Advisors LLC lifted its position in Block by 67,500.0% during the third quarter. Front Row Advisors LLC now owns 676 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 675 shares in the last quarter. Tidemark LLC acquired a new position in Block during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, YHB Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Block during the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 70.44% of the stock is 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.