Block (NYSE:XYZ) Upgraded by BNP Paribas Exane to "Outperform" Rating

BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Block (NYSE:XYZ - Free Report) from a neutral rating to an outperform rating in a research note published on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports. BNP Paribas Exane currently has $72.00 price objective on the technology company's stock.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on XYZ. Macquarie lowered Block from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $50.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Monday, May 5th. Argus set a $59.00 price target on Block in a report on Monday, May 5th. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $75.00 price target on shares of Block in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Block from $65.00 to $57.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Block from $105.00 to $80.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Block has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $75.23.

Block Stock Down 0.7%

XYZ stock traded down $0.41 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $61.74. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,583,337 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,535,805. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $55.30. Block has a 12 month low of $44.27 and a 12 month high of $99.26. The stock has a market cap of $37.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.57, a PEG ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 2.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 2.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Owen Britton Jennings sold 1,263 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.19, for a total transaction of $70,967.97. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 181,904 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,221,185.76. This represents a 0.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 6,494 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.39, for a total transaction of $366,196.66. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 591,629 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $33,361,959.31. This represents a 1.09% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 47,808 shares of company stock worth $2,682,529 in the last three months. Insiders own 10.85% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Block

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in Block stock. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management grew its stake in Block, Inc. (NYSE:XYZ - Free Report) by 183.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,154 shares of the technology company's stock after buying an additional 5,929 shares during the quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management's holdings in Block were worth $778,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.44% of the company's stock.

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.