Wall Street Zen Downgrades Block (NYSE:XYZ) to Hold

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Block (NYSE:XYZ) from a "buy" to a "hold," though other firms have mixed views—Morgan Stanley, HSBC, RBC and Raymond James issued positive ratings while Piper Sandler is bearish—leaving an overall consensus of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $81.72.
• Block beat Q results, reporting $0.65 EPS vs. $0.26 expected and $6.25 billion in revenue (+3.6% YoY); the stock trades around $71.24 with a $42.7B market cap, a PE of ~33.9, and a 1‑year range of $44.27–$82.50.

Block (NYSE:XYZ - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report issued on Sunday.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Block from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $72.00 to $93.00 in a report on Friday, February 27th. HSBC raised shares of Block from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $70.00 to $77.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Block in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of Block from $55.00 to $51.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Block to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $81.72.

Block Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE XYZ opened at $71.24 on Friday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $59.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $64.75. Block has a 1 year low of $44.27 and a 1 year high of $82.50. The company has a market capitalization of $42.68 billion, a PE ratio of 33.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 2.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a current ratio of 2.20.

Block (NYSE:XYZ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The technology company reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.39. Block had a net margin of 5.40% and a return on equity of 6.66%. The firm had revenue of $6.25 billion for the quarter. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.71 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Block will post 2.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Block news, insider Owen Britton Jennings sold 3,555 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.41, for a total transaction of $225,422.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 231,262 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,664,323.42. This represents a 1.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 10,349 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $517,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 503,784 shares of the company's stock, valued at $25,189,200. This trade represents a 2.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 15,806 shares of company stock valued at $857,468 over the last 90 days. 10.85% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Block

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Howard Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Block by 3.2% in the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,439 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $321,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its position in shares of Block by 23.1% in the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 853 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its position in shares of Block by 57.1% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 443 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in shares of Block by 0.8% in the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 21,183 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,561,000 after buying an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Block by 33.9% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 707 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. 70.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Block

Block NYSE: XYZ is a financial technology company that builds products and services to facilitate electronic payments, commerce, and consumer finance. Its principal business lines include a seller-focused ecosystem that provides point-of-sale hardware and software, payment processing, invoicing, payroll and lending services, and a consumer-facing platform that offers peer-to-peer payments, banking-like features, and investing. Block's portfolio also encompasses music streaming and buy-now-pay-later capabilities through businesses acquired to broaden its reach beyond core payments.

The company was founded as Square in 2009 by Jack Dorsey and Jim McKelvey and later rebranded to Block to reflect a diversified set of businesses across payments, consumer finance, and emerging technologies.

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