Block (NYSE:SQ) Stock Price Down 7.3% - Here's What Happened

Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ - Get Free Report) shares fell 7.3% on Friday . The company traded as low as $69.03 and last traded at $69.78. 3,144,803 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 60% from the average session volume of 7,932,087 shares. The stock had previously closed at $75.27.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $99.00 target price on shares of Block in a report on Friday, August 2nd. UBS Group dropped their target price on Block from $100.00 to $92.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Block from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Oppenheimer began coverage on shares of Block in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Block from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Block presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $90.56.

Block Stock Performance

The stock's 50-day moving average is $68.86 and its 200-day moving average is $67.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.89, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 2.48. The company has a current ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 500 shares of the company's 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 92,366 shares in the company, 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 filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 8,328 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.77, for a total transaction of $539,404.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 580,086 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,572,170.22. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were 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 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 25,214 shares of company stock worth $1,637,932 over the last three months. 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. National Pension Service lifted its position in Block by 13.5% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,083,113 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $72,709,000 after purchasing an additional 128,832 shares during the last quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Block by 13.9% in the 2nd quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC now owns 7,670,523 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $494,672,000 after purchasing an additional 934,588 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale boosted its position in shares of Block by 2.7% during the third quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 541,204 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $35,969,000 after purchasing an additional 14,163 shares in the last quarter. Forsta AP Fonden grew its stake in Block by 11.5% in the third quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 115,900 shares of the technology company's stock worth $7,780,000 after purchasing an additional 12,000 shares during the period. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its holdings in Block by 165.2% in the third quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 453,545 shares of the technology company's stock worth $30,446,000 after purchasing an additional 282,550 shares in the last quarter. 70.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.