H&R Block, Inc. $HRB Shares Purchased by Empowered Funds LLC

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in H&R Block by 13.7%, acquiring an additional 27,542 shares, bringing its total ownership to 227,934 shares valued at approximately $12.5 million.
• H&R Block recently increased its quarterly dividend from $0.38 to $0.42, with a yield of 3.2%, set to be paid on October 6th.
• Wall Street analysts have given H&R Block an average rating of "Hold", with recent price targets ranging from $48.00 to $62.00, indicating a decline in expectations.

Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB - Free Report) by 13.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 227,934 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 27,542 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC owned 0.17% of H&R Block worth $12,516,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new position in H&R Block during the 1st quarter worth $26,000. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its position in H&R Block by 72.1% during the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 513 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 215 shares during the last quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC raised its position in H&R Block by 42.9% during the 1st quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 666 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 21.8% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,356 shares of the company's stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 129.2% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,508 shares of the company's stock valued at $83,000 after purchasing an additional 850 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.14% of the company's stock.

H&R Block Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of H&R Block stock traded down $0.94 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $51.19. 1,345,195 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,902,801. H&R Block, Inc. has a twelve month low of $47.00 and a twelve month high of $64.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $53.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $55.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.86.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 12th. The company reported $2.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.81 by ($0.54). H&R Block had a negative return on equity of 191.38% and a net margin of 16.11%.The firm had revenue of $1.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.89 earnings per share. H&R Block's revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. H&R Block has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.850-5.000 EPS. Research analysts forecast that H&R Block, Inc. will post 5.25 EPS for the current year.

H&R Block Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th will be given a $0.42 dividend. This is a boost from H&R Block's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 4th. H&R Block's dividend payout ratio is 37.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on HRB. Barrington Research cut their price target on shares of H&R Block from $70.00 to $62.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of H&R Block from $54.00 to $48.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of H&R Block from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $55.00.

About H&R Block

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.