H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB) Shares Sold by Renaissance Technologies LLC

Renaissance Technologies LLC reduced its position in H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB - Free Report) by 89.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 59,800 shares of the company's stock after selling 510,300 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC's holdings in H&R Block were worth $3,160,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of Nova Scotia grew its stake in H&R Block by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 6,170 shares of the company's stock worth $326,000 after purchasing an additional 261 shares in the last quarter. FIL Ltd grew its stake in H&R Block by 69.1% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 13,668 shares of the company's stock worth $722,000 after purchasing an additional 5,584 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in H&R Block by 26.5% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,574,552 shares of the company's stock worth $83,199,000 after buying an additional 330,279 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in H&R Block by 13.3% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 28,247 shares of the company's stock worth $1,493,000 after buying an additional 3,313 shares during the period. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its holdings in H&R Block by 442.0% during the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 89,918 shares of the company's stock worth $4,751,000 after buying an additional 73,327 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.14% of the company's stock.

H&R Block Price Performance

Shares of HRB stock traded down $0.33 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $60.28. 89,391 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,356,124. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.46. The firm has a market cap of $8.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.59, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.39. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $55.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $56.14. H&R Block, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $46.46 and a fifty-two week high of $68.45.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported ($1.73) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.59) by ($0.14). H&R Block had a net margin of 14.71% and a negative return on equity of 179.15%. Sell-side analysts forecast that H&R Block, Inc. will post 5.25 EPS for the current year.

H&R Block Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th were paid a dividend of $0.375 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.49%. H&R Block's payout ratio is currently 41.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on HRB shares. Barrington Research restated an "outperform" rating and set a $70.00 target price on shares of H&R Block in a report on Friday. StockNews.com cut shares of H&R Block from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th.

Insider Activity at H&R Block

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

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.