Block (NYSE:XYZ) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at Bank of America

Bank of America began coverage on shares of Block (NYSE:XYZ) in a research note issued to investors on Thursday. The firm set a “buy” rating and a $88.00 price target on the technology company’s stock. Bank of America‘s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 33.66% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Compass Point upgraded Block from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Morgan Stanley upgraded Block from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $72.00 to $93.00 in a report on Friday, February 27th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on Block from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Block from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Block from $55.00 to $51.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have assigned a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $82.79.

Block Stock Up 0.9%

Block stock traded up $0.60 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $65.84. The company had a trading volume of 2,509,056 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,986,662. Block has a fifty-two week low of $44.27 and a fifty-two week high of $82.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.20 and a quick ratio of 2.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 2.65. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $61.20 and its 200-day moving average is $67.92.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Owen Britton Jennings sold 822 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.98, for a total value of $52,591.56. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 242,718 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,529,097.64. This trade represents a 0.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Amrita Ahuja sold 1,101 shares of Block stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.98, for a total transaction of $70,441.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 271,864 shares in the company, valued at $17,393,858.72. This trade represents a 0.40% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 16,797 shares of company stock valued at $940,298 in the last quarter. 10.85% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Traub Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Block during the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Block during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. City Holding Co. bought a new position in shares of Block in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Cromwell Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of Block in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Block in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. 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.