Clearbridge Investments LLC Boosts Stock Position in Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ)

Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its holdings in Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ - Free Report) by 55.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,895,227 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 672,627 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned approximately 0.31% of Block worth $146,596,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SQ. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Block during the fourth quarter worth $528,996,000. Baillie Gifford & Co. grew its stake in Block by 3,525.7% during the 4th quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 5,935,002 shares of the technology company's stock worth $459,072,000 after buying an additional 5,771,310 shares during the last quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC acquired a new position in Block during the 3rd quarter valued at about $172,001,000. Trivest Advisors Ltd purchased a new stake in Block in the fourth quarter valued at about $157,021,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd boosted its stake in Block by 72.8% in the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 2,683,346 shares of the technology company's stock worth $118,765,000 after purchasing an additional 1,130,925 shares in the last quarter. 70.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Block Price Performance

Shares of Block stock traded down $2.09 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $71.45. The company's stock had a trading volume of 9,184,873 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,771,499. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Block, Inc. has a one year low of $38.85 and a one year high of $87.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 92.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 2.57. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $76.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $70.78.

Block (NYSE:SQ - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The technology company reported $0.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.02 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $5.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.69 billion. Block had a net margin of 2.18% and a return on equity of 2.04%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Block, Inc. will post 1.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 113,668 shares of Block stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.56, for a total transaction of $7,679,410.08. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 603,861 shares of the company's stock, valued at $40,796,849.16. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Block news, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.75, for a total value of $42,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 68,323 shares in the company, valued at $5,790,374.25. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 113,668 shares of Block stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.56, for a total value of $7,679,410.08. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 603,861 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,796,849.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 349,669 shares of company stock valued at $26,599,075. Company insiders own 10.49% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on SQ shares. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $99.00 price target on shares of Block in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Citigroup lifted their price target on Block from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Wolfe Research increased their price objective on Block from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Mizuho lifted their target price on Block from $99.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Block from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twenty-seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $87.59.

Block Company Profile

Square, Inc provides payment and point-of-sale solutions in the United States and internationally. The company's commerce ecosystem includes point-of-sale software and hardware that enables sellers to turn mobile and computing devices into payment and point-of-sale solutions. It offers hardware products, including Magstripe reader, which enables swiped transactions of magnetic stripe cards; Contactless and chip reader that accepts EMV® chip cards and Near Field Communication payments; Chip card reader, which accepts EMV® chip cards and enables swiped transactions of magnetic stripe cards; Square Stand, which enables an iPad to be used as a payment terminal or full point of sale solution; and Square Register that combines its hardware, point-of-sale software, and payments technology, as well as managed payments solutions.