H&R Block (NYSE:HRB) Given New $48.00 Price Target at The Goldman Sachs Group

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs has lowered its price target for H&R Block from $54.00 to $48.00, maintaining a "sell" rating on the stock.
• Shares of H&R Block have recently traded down by 6.0% to hit $48.42, closing slightly above their new price target.
• Institutional investors have shown significant interest, with Mackenzie Financial Corp increasing its holdings in H&R Block by 302.9% in the second quarter.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB - Get Free Report) had its price target reduced by stock analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from $54.00 to $48.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "sell" rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group's price objective suggests a potential downside of 4.29% from the company's previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on HRB. Wall Street Zen raised H&R Block from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Northcoast Research lowered H&R Block from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of H&R Block in a report on Friday, April 25th.

H&R Block Trading Up 1.6%

H&R Block stock traded up $0.78 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $50.15. 2,422,271 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,592,710. H&R Block has a 52-week low of $47.00 and a 52-week high of $68.45. The company has a market capitalization of $6.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.22, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 12.86, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $54.94 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $55.69.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 12th. The company reported $2.27 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.81 by ($0.54). H&R Block had a net margin of 16.11% and a negative return on equity of 191.38%. The business had revenue of $1.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.89 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that H&R Block will post 5.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On H&R Block

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its stake in H&R Block by 13,920.9% during the 2nd quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 6,029 shares of the company's stock worth $331,000 after acquiring an additional 5,986 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its stake in H&R Block by 28.1% during the 2nd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 5,140 shares of the company's stock worth $282,000 after acquiring an additional 1,127 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC lifted its stake in H&R Block by 15.9% during the 2nd quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 23,337 shares of the company's stock worth $1,281,000 after acquiring an additional 3,198 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC increased its holdings in H&R Block by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 15,721 shares of the company's stock worth $863,000 after purchasing an additional 621 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in H&R Block by 71.9% during the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,226 shares of the company's stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 513 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.14% of the company's stock.

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.