Swedbank AB Has $18.14 Million Stake in H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB)

Swedbank AB boosted its holdings in H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB - Free Report) by 32.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 285,382 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 69,414 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB owned about 0.20% of H&R Block worth $18,136,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of H&R Block during the 4th quarter valued at $207,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 27.6% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 20,103 shares of the company's stock valued at $972,000 after purchasing an additional 4,348 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of H&R Block in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its stake in H&R Block by 32.6% in the 1st quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 14,937 shares of the company's stock worth $734,000 after purchasing an additional 3,672 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tealwood Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in H&R Block during the 1st quarter worth about $2,338,000. 90.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

H&R Block Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE HRB traded down $0.14 during trading on Friday, reaching $61.50. The company's stock had a trading volume of 854,553 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,166,711. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.58 billion, a PE ratio of 14.11, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.66. H&R Block, Inc. has a 1-year low of $39.20 and a 1-year high of $68.45. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $62.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $55.39.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The company reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.74 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. H&R Block had a net margin of 16.49% and a negative return on equity of 220.05%. H&R Block's quarterly revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.05 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that H&R Block, Inc. will post 5.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

H&R Block Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, September 5th were paid a $0.375 dividend. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.44%. This is an increase from H&R Block's previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 5th. H&R Block's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.32%.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on HRB. StockNews.com cut H&R Block from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Barrington Research restated an "outperform" rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of H&R Block in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective 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 Buying and Selling

In other H&R Block news, VP Kellie J. Logerwell sold 8,000 shares of the 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 in the company, valued at $1,189,910.34. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, VP Kellie J. Logerwell sold 8,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.41, for a total transaction of $515,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,474 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,189,910.34. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jeffrey J. Jones II sold 9,722 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.07, for a total transaction of $613,166.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 893,169 shares in the company, valued at $56,332,168.83. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 115,927 shares of company stock worth $7,517,056. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.