The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Has $6.35 Million Stake in H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lowered its holdings in H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB) by 1.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 117,065 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,054 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned about 0.08% of H&R Block worth $6,348,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in H&R Block by 42.3% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 49,650 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,438,000 after buying an additional 14,760 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of H&R Block by 270.7% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 16,319 shares of the company’s stock valued at $885,000 after purchasing an additional 11,917 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 576.5% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 580,227 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,496,000 after purchasing an additional 494,457 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 24.5% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 94,270 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,629,000 after purchasing an additional 18,556 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB bought a new position in H&R Block in the 1st quarter worth approximately $10,581,000. Institutional investors own 90.14% of the company’s stock.

H&R Block Stock Performance

Shares of H&R Block stock opened at $62.48 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $61.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $54.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.46, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.30, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.66. H&R Block, Inc. has a 52 week low of $39.20 and a 52 week high of $68.45.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The company reported $1.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.15. H&R Block had a negative return on equity of 220.05% and a net margin of 16.49%. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.05 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that H&R Block, Inc. will post 5.22 EPS for the current year.

H&R Block Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, September 5th were issued a dividend of $0.375 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 5th. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.40%. This is a boost from H&R Block’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. H&R Block’s payout ratio is currently 34.32%.

H&R Block announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, August 15th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 16.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HRB has been the subject of several research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on H&R Block from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of H&R Block in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of H&R Block from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th.

Insider Buying and Selling at H&R Block

In other news, insider Dara S. Redler sold 9,100 shares of H&R Block stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.10, for a total transaction of $583,310.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 22,066 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,414,430.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Jeffrey J. Jones II sold 9,722 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.07, for a total value of $613,166.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 893,169 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,332,168.83. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Dara S. Redler sold 9,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.10, for a total transaction of $583,310.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 22,066 shares in the company, valued at $1,414,430.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 115,927 shares of company stock valued at $7,517,056. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

H&R Block Company Profile

H&R Block, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides assisted income tax return preparation and do-it-yourself (DIY) tax return preparation services and products to the general public primarily in the United States, Canada, and Australia. It offers assisted income tax return preparation and related services through a system of retail offices operated directly by the company or its franchisees.