Block (NYSE:SQ) Downgraded to Market Perform Rating by BMO Capital Markets

BMO Capital Markets cut shares of Block (NYSE:SQ) from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a research report report published on Monday morning, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $100.00 target price on the technology company’s stock, up from their previous target price of $94.00.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on SQ. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Block from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on shares of Block from $95.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. BNP Paribas lowered shares of Block from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $88.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on Block from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Block in a report on Friday, November 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twenty-three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $91.46.

Block Price Performance

Shares of SQ stock opened at $90.79 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 2.48. Block has a 12-month low of $55.00 and a 12-month high of $94.12. The company has a quick ratio of 2.07, a current ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $74.33 and a 200-day moving average of $68.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.00, for a total value of $33,500.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 90,460 shares in the company, valued at $6,060,820. This represents a 0.55 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Amrita Ahuja sold 6,661 shares of Block stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.43, for a total value of $609,015.23. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 246,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,580,192.81. The trade was a 2.63 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 29,053 shares of company stock worth $2,393,972 in the last ninety days. 10.49% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Block

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SQ. Baillie Gifford & Co. raised its holdings in Block by 1.5% in the third quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 10,233,102 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $686,948,000 after buying an additional 147,873 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Block by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,690,075 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $581,923,000 after acquiring an additional 133,002 shares during the last quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC boosted its stake in Block by 13.9% during the 2nd quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC now owns 7,670,523 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $494,672,000 after purchasing an additional 934,588 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Block by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,202,388 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $147,846,000 after purchasing an additional 45,472 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Block by 17.8% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,157,733 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $139,143,000 after purchasing an additional 326,444 shares during the last quarter. 70.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.