Block (NYSE:XYZ) Stock Price Down 5.4% – Here’s What Happened

Block, Inc. (NYSE:XYZ) was down 5.4% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $61.11 and last traded at $60.8750. Approximately 8,150,461 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 10% from the average daily volume of 9,015,761 shares. The stock had previously closed at $64.35.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $95.00 price target on shares of Block in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Block from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Block from $58.00 to $55.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Block from $96.00 to $82.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Block from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $83.42.

Block Stock Down 6.6%

The firm’s fifty day moving average is $71.75 and its 200-day moving average is $70.99. The company has a market capitalization of $36.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 2.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 2.18 and a current ratio of 2.18.

Block (NYSE:XYZ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The technology company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.29. The firm had revenue of $6.11 billion for the quarter. Block had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 5.54%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.53 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Block, Inc. will post 2.54 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Block

In related news, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 35,145 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $2,811,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 535,896 shares in the company, valued at $42,871,680. This trade represents a 6.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Owen Britton Jennings sold 10,417 shares of Block stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.40, for a total transaction of $639,603.80. Following the sale, the insider owned 243,540 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,953,356. This represents a 4.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 99,198 shares of company stock valued at $6,968,155. 10.49% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Block

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Block in the second quarter worth $3,730,489,000. Sands Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Block during the 2nd quarter worth $702,446,000. Geode Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Block during the 2nd quarter worth about $634,721,000. Dragoneer Investment Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Block in the 2nd quarter valued at about $627,233,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Block in the 2nd quarter valued at about $535,305,000. 70.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.