Zacks Research Downgrades Block (NYSE:XYZ) to Hold

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded Block (NYSE:XYZ) from strong-buy to hold, even though the broader analyst view remains positive with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $84.51.
• Block reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, posting $0.85 EPS versus the $0.30 estimate and revenue of $6.06 billion, while also issuing Q2 and FY 2026 EPS guidance.
• Insiders have been selling shares, including CFO Amrita Ahuja and insider Owen Britton Jennings, with total insider sales of 49,725 shares worth about $3.4 million over the past 90 days.

Block (NYSE:XYZ - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Block to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Block in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $74.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Block from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on shares of Block from $78.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Block from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $84.51.

Block Stock Performance

Shares of XYZ stock opened at $69.87 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $65.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $64.06. Block has a 52 week low of $48.21 and a 52 week high of $82.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.86 billion, a PE ratio of 54.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 2.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.99, a current ratio of 1.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Block (NYSE:XYZ - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The technology company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.55. The company had revenue of $6.06 billion during the quarter. Block had a net margin of 3.30% and a return on equity of 7.02%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.56 earnings per share. Block has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.860-0.860 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 3.850-3.850 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Block will post 2.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Owen Britton Jennings sold 3,555 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.41, for a total value of $225,422.55. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 231,262 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,664,323.42. This trade represents a 1.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Amrita Ahuja sold 30,919 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.00, for a total transaction of $2,318,925.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 500,816 shares in the company, valued at $37,561,200. This represents a 5.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 49,725 shares of company stock valued at $3,401,393 over the last 90 days. 11.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Block

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Block during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Block by 57.1% during the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 443 shares of the technology company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 161 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Block in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. RMG Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Block in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd acquired a new stake in Block during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. 70.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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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