Block, Inc. $XYZ Shares Sold by Baillie Gifford & Co.

Key Points

• Baillie Gifford & Co. cut its stake in Block by 15.3% in Q4, selling 1,779,458 shares and leaving 9,875,845 shares (about 1.63% of the company) valued at $642.82 million.
• Block beat Q4 EPS estimates ($0.65 vs. $0.26) with revenue of $6.25 billion (up 3.6% YoY); the stock has a $37.22 billion market cap and a 52-week range of $44.27–$82.50.
• Analysts hold a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $81.72, though individual targets and ratings range from underweight ($51) to outperform/buy (up to $89).

Baillie Gifford & Co. cut its holdings in Block, Inc. (NYSE:XYZ - Free Report) by 15.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,875,845 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 1,779,458 shares during the quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. owned approximately 1.63% of Block worth $642,819,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of XYZ. Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Block by 24.0% during the third quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 179,271 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $12,956,000 after buying an additional 34,678 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Block during the third quarter valued at approximately $5,383,000. New York Life Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Block during the third quarter valued at approximately $5,400,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Block by 2,385.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 612,358 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $44,255,000 after buying an additional 587,719 shares during the period. Finally, Hartford Investment Management Co. purchased a new position in shares of Block during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,323,000. 70.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Block Stock Performance

Shares of XYZ stock opened at $62.12 on Monday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $58.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $64.91. Block, Inc. has a 52 week low of $44.27 and a 52 week high of $82.50. The company has a current ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company has a market cap of $37.22 billion, a PE ratio of 29.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 2.61.

Block (NYSE:XYZ - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The technology company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.39. Block had a net margin of 5.40% and a return on equity of 6.66%. The business had revenue of $6.25 billion for the quarter. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.71 EPS. The business's revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Block, Inc. will post 2.54 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on XYZ shares. Loop Capital started coverage on shares of Block in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. They set a "buy" rating and a $75.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Block to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Block from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Block from $55.00 to $51.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Block in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $81.72.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 10,349 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $517,450.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 503,784 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $25,189,200. This trade represents a 2.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Owen Britton Jennings sold 3,555 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.41, for a total transaction of $225,422.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 231,262 shares in the company, valued at $14,664,323.42. This represents a 1.51% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 15,806 shares of company stock worth $857,468. Insiders own 10.49% of the company's stock.

Block Profile

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.

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