Brokerages Set Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ) Price Target at $85.67

Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the thirty-four brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have assigned a hold recommendation and twenty-eight have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $85.67.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on SQ. KeyCorp raised their price objective on Block from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Seaport Res Ptn raised Block from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Block from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and set a $60.00 price objective (down from $62.00) on shares of Block in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI reiterated an “in-line” rating and issued a $75.00 target price on shares of Block in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th.

Insider Activity at Block

In other news, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 127,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.45, for a total value of $8,364,510.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 405,224 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,521,910.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CFO Amrita Ahuja sold 2,581 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.30, for a total value of $165,958.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 201,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,972,782.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 127,800 shares of Block stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.45, for a total transaction of $8,364,510.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 405,224 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,521,910.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 363,801 shares of company stock worth $27,284,175. 10.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Block

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Block by 10.4% in the 3rd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,222,600 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $54,112,000 after purchasing an additional 115,132 shares in the last quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. grew its stake in Block by 1.5% during the third quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 261,300 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $11,565,000 after acquiring an additional 3,900 shares in the last quarter. IFG Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Block during the fourth quarter valued at $213,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its holdings in Block by 16.1% in the 3rd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,373,857 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $60,807,000 after acquiring an additional 190,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CenterBook Partners LP purchased a new stake in Block in the 3rd quarter worth $359,000. 70.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Block Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of Block stock opened at $72.80 on Tuesday. Block has a 1 year low of $38.85 and a 1 year high of $87.52. The firm has a market cap of $44.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 442.41, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 2.55. The company has a 50-day moving average of $77.21 and a 200 day moving average of $66.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 1.90 and a quick ratio of 1.90.

Block (NYSE:SQ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The technology company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02 by $0.01. Block had a net margin of 0.04% and a return on equity of 0.63%. The business had revenue of $5.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.69 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Block will post 1.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.