CWA Asset Management Group LLC Grows Position in H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB)

CWA Asset Management Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB - Free Report) by 32.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,426 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,539 shares during the quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC's holdings in H&R Block were worth $1,231,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of H&R Block during the 4th quarter valued at $46,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in H&R Block by 129.2% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,508 shares of the company's stock worth $83,000 after buying an additional 850 shares during the period. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its stake in H&R Block by 1,552.2% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,520 shares of the company's stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 1,428 shares in the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC raised its holdings in H&R Block by 87.0% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 1,612 shares of the company's stock valued at $85,000 after acquiring an additional 750 shares during the period. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new position in shares of H&R Block in the fourth quarter valued at about $85,000. Institutional investors own 90.14% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Jeffrey J. Jones II sold 53,810 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.28, for a total value of $3,405,096.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 844,790 shares of the company's stock, valued at $53,458,311.20. This represents a 5.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HRB has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Northcoast Research cut H&R Block from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of H&R Block from $49.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen raised H&R Block from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $70.00 target price on shares of H&R Block in a research report on Friday, April 25th.

H&R Block Stock Down 0.0%

HRB stock opened at $55.09 on Friday. H&R Block, Inc. has a 52 week low of $49.16 and a 52 week high of $68.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $58.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $55.62.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $5.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.12 by $0.26. H&R Block had a net margin of 15.20% and a negative return on equity of 179.57%. The firm had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.25 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.94 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that H&R Block, Inc. will post 5.25 EPS for the current year.

H&R Block Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.375 per share. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.72%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 4th. H&R Block's payout ratio is 36.76%.

H&R Block Company Profile

H&R Block, Inc engages in the provision of tax return preparation solutions, financial products and small business solutions. The company was founded by Henry W. Bloch and Richard A. Bloch on January 25, 1955, and is headquartered in Kansas City, MO.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.