Block (NYSE:XYZ) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Piper Sandler Analyst Says

Key Points

• Piper Sandler raised its price target on Block from $51 to $58 but kept an "underweight" rating, with that target implying about a 22.3% downside from the prior close.
• Block beat Q1 estimates—EPS $0.85 vs. $0.30 and revenue $6.06B—and raised Q2 and FY2026 EPS guidance to $0.86 and $3.85, prompting multiple analyst upgrades and a MarketBeat consensus of "Moderate Buy" with a ~$83.94 price target.
• Investors should note valuation and volatility risks: the stock trades at a high P/E (~35) with a beta ~2.6 and showed only modest revenue growth (~4.9% YoY), which could temper upside.

Block (NYSE:XYZ - Get Free Report) had its price objective upped by analysts at Piper Sandler from $51.00 to $58.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "underweight" rating on the technology company's stock. Piper Sandler's target price points to a potential downside of 22.30% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on XYZ. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Block to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn upgraded shares of Block from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $45.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Block from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Block from $105.00 to $85.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Block in a research report on Friday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $83.94.

Block Stock Performance

Block stock traded up $4.50 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $74.64. The stock had a trading volume of 5,606,360 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,526,423. The company has a 50-day moving average of $63.99 and a two-hundred day moving average of $64.19. The company has a quick ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Block has a fifty-two week low of $48.21 and a fifty-two week high of $82.50. The company has a market cap of $44.72 billion, a PE ratio of 35.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 2.57.

Block (NYSE:XYZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The technology company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.55. The company had revenue of $6.06 billion for the quarter. Block had a return on equity of 6.66% and a net margin of 5.40%.Block's revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.56 EPS. Block has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.860-0.860 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 3.850-3.850 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Block will post 2.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Owen Britton Jennings sold 3,555 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.41, for a total value of $225,422.55. Following the sale, the insider owned 231,262 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,664,323.42. The trade was a 1.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Amrita Ahuja sold 30,919 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.00, for a total transaction of $2,318,925.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 500,816 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,561,200. The trade was a 5.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 49,725 shares of company stock valued at $3,401,393 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 11.37% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Block

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Baird Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Block in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,866,000. Brown Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in Block during the 2nd quarter valued at $516,000. Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in Block in the 2nd quarter valued at $385,000. Federated Hermes Inc. bought a new position in Block in the 2nd quarter valued at $53,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC acquired a new position in Block in the second quarter worth $1,861,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.44% of the company's stock.

More Block News

Here are the key news stories impacting Block this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 earnings beat and strong unit results: Block reported EPS of $0.85 vs. consensus ~$0.30 and revenue of $6.06B, signaling improving profitability after restructuring. Block (XYZ) Q1 Earnings Surpass Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Raised guidance: Block lifted Q2 EPS guidance to $0.86 and FY2026 to $3.85 (above consensus), which underpins the bullish reaction and improves near-term visibility. Block Lifts Guidance on Higher Payment Volumes, Boom in Lending
• Positive Sentiment: Product and strategic momentum: Management highlighted AI-driven automation, embedded finance and Cash App turning into a lending hub — potential drivers of higher-margin lending revenue. Block Rallies as AI Push Turns Cash App Into a Lending Hub
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support: Several firms raised targets and reiterated buys (BTIG reaffirmed $90 PT; Needham raised its PT to $95), adding to upward momentum. Benzinga Benzinga
• Neutral Sentiment: Management commentary and investor communications: Company filed the Q1 release and hosted a call to discuss results; details may create follow-on moves depending on execution. Block Announces First Quarter 2026 Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue growth was modest (≈4.9% YoY) despite profit beat — investors will watch whether top-line momentum accelerates. Block Shares Climb After Q1 Report — Here's Why
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and volatility risk: XYZ trades with a relatively high P/E (~34.7) and a beta ~2.6, so upside is accompanied by higher market volatility and valuation scrutiny. (Background market data: Market Cap $43.5B, 50/200-day MAs ~ $64.)
• Negative Sentiment: Pre-quarter concerns around bitcoin-related revenue and some weakened analyst sentiment were flagged in previews — a reminder of business mix risks. Block Gears Up to Report Q1 Earnings

About Block

Block NYSE: XYZ is a financial technology company that builds products and services to facilitate electronic payments, commerce, and consumer finance. Its principal business lines include a seller-focused ecosystem that provides point-of-sale hardware and software, payment processing, invoicing, payroll and lending services, and a consumer-facing platform that offers peer-to-peer payments, banking-like features, and investing. Block's portfolio also encompasses music streaming and buy-now-pay-later capabilities through businesses acquired to broaden its reach beyond core payments.

The company was founded as Square in 2009 by Jack Dorsey and Jim McKelvey and later rebranded to Block to reflect a diversified set of businesses across payments, consumer finance, and emerging technologies.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.