H&R Block (NYSE:HRB) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Key Points

• H&R Block reported a quarterly loss of $1.40 per share, beating analysts’ consensus estimate of a $1.43 loss by $0.03.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend from $0.42 to $0.46 per share, equivalent to an annualized dividend of $1.84 and a 3.6% yield.
• Analysts’ consensus rating was Hold, with an average price target of $46.67; shares fell $1.48 to $51.21 during Monday’s trading.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB - Get Free Report) posted its earnings results on Monday. The company reported ($1.40) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.43) by $0.03, FiscalAI reports. H&R Block had a net margin of 18.59% and a negative return on equity of 214.84%.

H&R Block Stock Performance

H&R Block stock traded down $1.48 during trading on Monday, hitting $51.21. The stock had a trading volume of 2,364,840 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,280,998. H&R Block has a 1 year low of $28.16 and a 1 year high of $58.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.69. The stock's 50 day moving average is $46.79 and its two-hundred day moving average is $39.55. The stock has a market cap of $6.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 0.40.

H&R Block Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 3rd were issued a $0.46 dividend. This is a boost from H&R Block's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 3rd. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. H&R Block's payout ratio is presently 32.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HRB has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barrington Research upped their target price on H&R Block from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on H&R Block from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Stephens assumed coverage on H&R Block in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $47.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded H&R Block from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered H&R Block from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, H&R Block has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $46.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other H&R Block news, insider Mark J. Darling sold 2,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.69, for a total value of $109,863.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 21,588 shares of the company's stock, valued at $878,415.72. This trade represents a 11.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.67% of the company's stock.

H&R Block Company Profile

H&R Block, Inc provides tax preparation and related financial services to individuals and small businesses. Its offerings include in-person tax preparation, online do-it-yourself filing, virtual tax assistance, and tax software, along with bookkeeping and other small-business services through its Block Advisors and Wave brands.

Founded in 1955 in Kansas City, Missouri, by brothers Henry and Richard Bloch, the company grew from a local tax preparation business into a provider of tax services through offices and digital channels.

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