Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Has $1.79 Million Stock Position in Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ)

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC reduced its stake in shares of Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ - Free Report) by 35.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 21,022 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 11,699 shares during the quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC's holdings in Block were worth $1,787,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of SQ. SouthState Corp raised its position in Block by 85.3% in the third quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 391 shares of the technology company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in shares of Block by 64.7% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 494 shares of the technology company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Block by 67.7% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 394 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in Block during the 3rd quarter valued at about $46,000. Finally, Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new position in Block during the 3rd quarter valued at about $57,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.44% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on SQ. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Block from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $94.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Block from $105.00 to $100.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price objective on Block from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Raymond James raised shares of Block from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $115.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Block in a report on Friday, November 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and twenty-seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Block has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $97.68.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Chrysty Esperanza sold 2,964 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $237,120.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 88,607 shares in the company, valued at $7,088,560. This represents a 3.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $80,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 88,791 shares in the company, valued at $7,103,280. The trade was a 1.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 29,981 shares of company stock valued at $2,681,185 in the last three months. Company insiders own 10.49% of the company's stock.

Block Trading Up 0.7 %

SQ traded up $0.62 during trading on Friday, reaching $87.00. The company had a trading volume of 5,788,892 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,438,821. Block, Inc. has a 12-month low of $55.00 and a 12-month high of $99.26. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $89.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $74.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 2.07 and a current ratio of 2.07. The company has a market cap of $53.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.88, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 2.51.

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.