UBS Group Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Block (NYSE:XYZ) Stock Price

Block (NYSE:XYZ) had its price objective cut by analysts at UBS Group from $98.00 to $97.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the technology company’s stock. UBS Group’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 41.94% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other analysts also recently commented on XYZ. Barclays upped their price objective on Block from $100.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. StockNews.com began coverage on Block in a report on Saturday, February 15th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $83.00 price target on shares of Block in a report on Monday, November 11th. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Block in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on Block from $95.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twenty-six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $97.23.

Block Stock Performance

XYZ stock opened at $68.34 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $42.36 billion, a PE ratio of 15.02, a PEG ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 2.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 2.07. Block has a 52 week low of $55.00 and a 52 week high of $99.26.

Block (NYSE:XYZ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The technology company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $6.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.23 billion. Block had a return on equity of 5.80% and a net margin of 11.92%. Research analysts expect that Block will post 2.54 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Block

In other Block news, insider Owen Britton Jennings sold 2,836 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.38, for a total value of $253,481.68. Following the sale, the insider now owns 195,449 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,469,231.62. This trade represents a 1.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Chrysty Esperanza sold 2,865 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total transaction of $272,175.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 85,235 shares in the company, valued at $8,097,325. The trade was a 3.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 9,247 shares of company stock valued at $832,865. Insiders own 10.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Block

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in XYZ. Creative Planning increased its stake in shares of Block by 10.5% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 73,399 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $4,927,000 after purchasing an additional 6,990 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. increased its stake in shares of Block by 30.0% in the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 1,798 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $121,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Block by 15.1% in the third quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 8,322 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $559,000 after purchasing an additional 1,089 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Block in the third quarter valued at approximately $58,850,000. Finally, IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its stake in shares of Block by 0.4% in the third quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 109,276 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $7,336,000 after purchasing an additional 489 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.44% of the company’s stock.

Block Company Profile

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.