H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB) Given Average Recommendation of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• H&R Block has received an average recommendation of "Hold" from five brokerages, with ratings including one sell, two hold, and two buy.
• The company's quarterly earnings report showed an EPS of $2.27, which missed expectations, but revenue increased by 4.6% year-over-year to $1.11 billion.
• H&R Block announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.42, yielding 3.2%, with a payout ratio of 37.58% and an ex-dividend date set for September 4th.

H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB - Get Free Report) has been given an average recommendation of "Hold" by the five brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $55.00.

HRB has been the topic of several research reports. Barrington Research reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $62.00 price objective on shares of H&R Block in a report on Tuesday, September 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of H&R Block from $54.00 to $48.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Zacks Research lowered shares of H&R Block from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of H&R Block in a report on Saturday, September 27th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in shares of H&R Block by 40.0% in the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 651 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. raised its position in shares of H&R Block by 1.6% in the first quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 11,942 shares of the company's stock worth $656,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the period. CWM LLC raised its position in shares of H&R Block by 1.3% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 15,159 shares of the company's stock worth $832,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the period. Bogart Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its position in shares of H&R Block by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 37,700 shares of the company's stock worth $2,069,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.14% of the company's stock.

H&R Block Stock Up 1.2%

HRB stock traded up $0.61 during trading on Friday, hitting $51.75. 1,045,873 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,522,256. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.58, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.31. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.73 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $55.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.86. H&R Block has a 1 year low of $47.00 and a 1 year high of $64.62.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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). The business had revenue of $1.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.07 billion. H&R Block had a net margin of 16.11% and a negative return on equity of 191.38%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.89 earnings per share. H&R Block has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.850-5.000 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that H&R Block will post 5.25 EPS for the current year.

H&R Block Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 6th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 4th will be given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. This is an increase from H&R Block's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 4th. H&R Block's payout ratio is currently 37.58%.

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.

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