M&T Bank Corp Trims Stake in Block, Inc. $XYZ

Key Points

• M&T Bank Corp cut its stake in Block by 74.3% in Q4, selling 24,705 shares and leaving it with 8,559 shares worth about $557,000.
• Block beat EPS estimates (reported $0.65 vs. $0.26 expected) and posted revenue of $6.25 billion (up 3.6% year‑over‑year), while the company trades at a market cap of about $43.1 billion and a P/E of 34.24.
• Insiders have sold a total of 49,725 shares (≈$3.4M) in the past 90 days while insiders own 10.85% and institutional investors hold 70.44%; analysts’ consensus is a “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $82.78.

M&T Bank Corp reduced its position in Block, Inc. (NYSE:XYZ - Free Report) by 74.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,559 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 24,705 shares during the quarter. M&T Bank Corp's holdings in Block were worth $557,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Howard Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Block by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,439 shares of the technology company's stock worth $321,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its position in Block by 23.1% in the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 853 shares of the technology company's stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its position in Block by 57.1% in the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 443 shares of the technology company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in Block by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 21,183 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,561,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. Finally, Vista Investment Partners II LLC raised its position in Block by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Vista Investment Partners II LLC now owns 5,334 shares of the technology company's stock worth $385,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the period. 70.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Block Price Performance

Shares of XYZ stock opened at $71.90 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.20 and a quick ratio of 2.20. The company has a market capitalization of $43.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 2.57. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $62.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $64.44. Block, Inc. has a one year low of $44.27 and a one year high of $82.50.

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, topping 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 quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.71 earnings per share. Block's revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Block, Inc. will post 2.22 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Block

In other news, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 10,349 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $517,450.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 503,784 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,189,200. This trade represents a 2.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Owen Britton Jennings sold 3,555 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.41, for a total transaction of $225,422.55. Following the transaction, the insider owned 231,262 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,664,323.42. This represents a 1.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 49,725 shares of company stock valued at $3,401,393 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 10.85% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

XYZ has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of Block from a "hold" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $83.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Block in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $74.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Block from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, April 19th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Block from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Block from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $70.00 to $77.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $82.78.

About Block

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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