Empowered Funds LLC Raises Stake in H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB)

Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB - Free Report) by 1,013.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 129,891 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 118,228 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC owned approximately 0.09% of H&R Block worth $8,255,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in H&R Block during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Bogart Wealth LLC lifted 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 purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new position in shares of H&R Block in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 4,152.9% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 723 shares of the company's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 706 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC increased its stake in H&R Block by 2,756.0% during the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 714 shares of the company's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 689 shares during the period. 90.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Insider Transactions at H&R Block

In other news, VP Kellie J. Logerwell sold 8,000 shares of H&R Block stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.41, for a total transaction of $515,280.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 18,474 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,189,910.34. The trade was a 30.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Dara S. Redler sold 9,100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.10, for a total value of $583,310.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,066 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,414,430.60. The trade was a 29.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 115,927 shares of company stock valued at $7,517,056. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

H&R Block Stock Up 1.6 %

H&R Block stock traded up $0.94 during trading on Friday, reaching $60.08. The stock had a trading volume of 1,304,453 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,172,374. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.46. H&R Block, Inc. has a 52-week low of $42.28 and a 52-week high of $68.45. The stock has a market cap of $8.23 billion, a PE ratio of 14.65, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.67. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $61.74 and a 200 day moving average price of $57.43.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported ($1.17) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.13) by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $193.81 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $188.78 million. H&R Block had a negative return on equity of 212.45% and a net margin of 16.19%. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($1.05) earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that H&R Block, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

H&R Block Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be issued a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. H&R Block's payout ratio is currently 36.59%.

H&R Block announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, August 15th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 16.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

H&R Block Company Profile

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.