Block (NYSE:SQ) Shares Down 0.2%

Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ - Get Free Report)'s share price was down 0.2% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $64.37 and last traded at $64.78. Approximately 1,524,929 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 8,736,881 shares. The stock had previously closed at $64.88.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on SQ. Susquehanna reiterated a "positive" rating and set a $100.00 price objective on shares of Block in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $99.00 price target on shares of Block in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Block from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Block from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $95.00 price target on shares of Block in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twenty-five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Block presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $86.20.

Block Stock Up 1.1 %

The company has a market cap of $40.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 84.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 2.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.82 and a quick ratio of 1.82. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $63.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $69.93.

Block (NYSE:SQ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The technology company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.09. Block had a return on equity of 3.77% and a net margin of 3.47%. The firm had revenue of $6.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.40 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Block, Inc. will post 1.72 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.88, for a total transaction of $30,940.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 92,366 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,715,608.08. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other 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 directly owns 92,366 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,715,608.08. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Chrysty Esperanza sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $175,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 92,048 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,443,360. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 11,784 shares of company stock valued at $772,623. 10.49% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Block

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC lifted its stake in Block by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 10,618 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $898,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc increased its holdings in shares of Block by 7.2% during the first quarter. Financial Perspectives Inc now owns 2,300 shares of the technology company's stock worth $195,000 after buying an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Block by 25.4% in the 1st quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 765 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Block by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,831 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $409,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CAP Partners LLC grew its position in Block by 3.5% during the 1st quarter. CAP Partners LLC now owns 4,765 shares of the technology company's stock worth $403,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.44% of the company's stock.

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.