Block (NYSE:SQ) Stock Rating Reaffirmed by Monness Crespi & Hardt

Block (NYSE:SQ)‘s stock had its “neutral” rating reiterated by research analysts at Monness Crespi & Hardt in a report issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on SQ. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Block from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Block from $77.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Block from $95.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Susquehanna reiterated a “positive” rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of Block in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $90.00 price target on shares of Block in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Block has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.67.

Block Trading Down 8.5 %

Shares of NYSE:SQ opened at $66.83 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $77.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $67.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 1.90 and a quick ratio of 1.90. Block has a one year low of $38.85 and a one year high of $87.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.15 billion, a PE ratio of 429.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 2.57.

Block (NYSE:SQ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The technology company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.02 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $5.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.69 billion. Block had a net margin of 0.04% and a return on equity of 0.63%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Block will post 1.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Block

In other news, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 656 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.30, for a total transaction of $42,180.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 68,823 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,425,318.90. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Block news, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 127,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.45, for a total value of $8,364,510.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 405,224 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,521,910.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 656 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.30, for a total transaction of $42,180.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 68,823 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,425,318.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 363,801 shares of company stock valued at $27,284,175. Company insiders own 10.79% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Block

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Block during the first quarter worth $28,000. Montag A & Associates Inc. increased its position in shares of Block by 843.2% during the fourth quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 349 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 312 shares during the period. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Block during the first quarter worth $33,000. Tidemark LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Block during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Vima LLC acquired a new stake in Block in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. 70.44% of the stock is currently 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.