Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Invests $2.69 Million in H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in shares of H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 50,889 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,689,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of HRB. Spire Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of H&R Block in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in H&R Block in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in H&R Block during the 4th quarter valued at $46,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in H&R Block during the fourth quarter worth $75,000. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its position in H&R Block by 1,552.2% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,520 shares of the company's stock worth $80,000 after purchasing an additional 1,428 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.14% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Northcoast Research lowered shares of H&R Block from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of H&R Block in a research note on Friday, April 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of H&R Block from $49.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of H&R Block from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th.

H&R Block Stock Performance

NYSE HRB traded up $1.55 on Monday, reaching $58.50. The stock had a trading volume of 1,400,542 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,381,498. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.46, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The company has a market cap of $7.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.28. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $58.23 and a two-hundred day moving average of $55.80. H&R Block, Inc. has a 1-year low of $48.78 and a 1-year high of $68.45.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $5.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.12 by $0.26. H&R Block had a net margin of 14.71% and a negative return on equity of 179.15%. The business had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.25 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.94 earnings per share. H&R Block's revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that H&R Block, Inc. will post 5.25 EPS for the current year.

H&R Block Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.375 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 4th. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.56%. H&R Block's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.76%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Jeffrey J. Jones II sold 53,810 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.28, for a total value of $3,405,096.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 844,790 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,458,311.20. This trade represents a 5.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.