Azora Capital LP Boosts Stake in Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ)

Azora Capital LP lifted its holdings in shares of Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ - Free Report) by 358.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 503,402 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 393,593 shares during the period. Block comprises approximately 1.8% of Azora Capital LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Azora Capital LP owned 0.08% of Block worth $33,793,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. SouthState Corp raised its stake in Block by 85.3% in the 3rd quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 391 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in Block by 64.7% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 494 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares during the period. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Block during the second quarter valued at about $34,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Block during the second quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Block during the third quarter valued at about $46,000. 70.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 1,781 shares of Block stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.43, for a total transaction of $162,836.83. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 86,010 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,863,894.30. This trade represents a 2.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 1,884 shares of Block stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.41, for a total value of $123,232.44. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 574,914 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,605,124.74. The trade was a 0.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 29,053 shares of company stock worth $2,393,972 over the last quarter. 10.49% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Block Price Performance

SQ traded up $4.22 during trading on Monday, hitting $92.77. The company's stock had a trading volume of 13,989,875 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,239,724. The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Block, Inc. has a twelve month low of $55.00 and a twelve month high of $95.95. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $76.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 2.48.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SQ has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $88.00 price target on shares of Block in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and set a $83.00 target price on shares of Block in a report on Monday, November 11th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Block from $100.00 to $92.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. BNP Paribas downgraded Block from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $88.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on Block from $95.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twenty-four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $93.21.

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.