BNP Paribas Financial Markets Sells 200,251 Shares of H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets decreased its position in shares of H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB - Free Report) by 28.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 514,972 shares of the company's stock after selling 200,251 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned about 0.38% of H&R Block worth $32,726,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HRB. Eastern Bank bought a new position in shares of H&R Block during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Bogart Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of H&R Block by 606.1% during the third quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 466 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of H&R Block during the third quarter worth $34,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of H&R Block during the third quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in H&R Block in the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.14% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Jeffrey J. Jones II sold 9,722 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.07, for a total value of $613,166.54. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 893,169 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,332,168.83. This trade represents a 1.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Kellie J. Logerwell sold 8,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.41, for a total transaction of $515,280.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,474 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,189,910.34. This represents a 30.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

H&R Block Price Performance

NYSE:HRB opened at $59.29 on Friday. H&R Block, Inc. has a 52-week low of $42.28 and a 52-week high of $68.45. The company has a market cap of $8.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.46, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.46, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.77. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $60.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $57.95.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported ($1.17) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.13) by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $193.81 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $188.78 million. H&R Block had a net margin of 16.19% and a negative return on equity of 212.45%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($1.05) EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that H&R Block, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

H&R Block announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, August 15th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 16.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

H&R Block Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be given a dividend of $0.375 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.53%. H&R Block's dividend payout ratio is 36.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on HRB. Barrington Research reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of H&R Block in a research note on Friday, November 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on H&R Block from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of H&R Block from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th.

About H&R Block

H&R Block, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides assisted income tax return preparation and do-it-yourself (DIY) tax return preparation services and products to the general public primarily in the United States, Canada, and Australia. It offers assisted income tax return preparation and related services through a system of retail offices operated directly by the company or its franchisees.