Block (NYSE:SQ) Trading Up 8.4% on Analyst Upgrade

Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ) shares traded up 8.4% on Monday after Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on the stock from $71.00 to $80.00. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has a market perform rating on the stock. Block traded as high as $80.90 and last traded at $80.86. 4,596,769 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 43% from the average session volume of 8,016,324 shares. The stock had previously closed at $74.56.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on SQ. New Street Research initiated coverage on Block in a research note on Monday, September 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $70.00 price target for the company. Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of Block in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on shares of Block from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $88.00 price target on shares of Block in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Block from $93.00 to $92.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $90.37.

Insider Activity

In other Block news, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.88, for a total transaction of $30,940.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 92,366 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,715,608.08. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CFO Amrita Ahuja sold 6,661 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.70, for a total value of $430,966.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 264,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,125,895.90. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.88, for a total value of $30,940.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 92,366 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,715,608.08. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 25,214 shares of company stock valued at $1,637,932 in the last ninety days. 10.49% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Block

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Yoder Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Block by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Yoder Wealth Management Inc. now owns 39,688 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,664,000 after buying an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV increased its position in shares of Block by 1.9% in the third quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 7,744 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $520,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares during the period. Moser Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Block by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Moser Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,265 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $421,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Block by 6.3% during the third quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 2,592 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $174,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. raised its holdings in Block by 13.8% in the 3rd quarter. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. now owns 1,351 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. 70.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Block Trading Up 10.0 %

The company has a market capitalization of $50.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 2.48. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $68.86 and its 200-day moving average is $66.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.82 and a quick ratio of 1.82.

About Block

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.