H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB - Get Free Report) saw a significant decrease in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 10,190,000 shares, a decrease of 7.4% from the October 15th total of 11,000,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,410,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 7.2 days. Approximately 7.5% of the company's shares are short sold.

H&R Block Stock Performance

HRB stock traded up $0.30 during trading on Monday, reaching $60.38. 680,318 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,170,167. 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 has a 1-year low of $42.28 and a 1-year high of $68.45. The company's fifty day moving average price is $61.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $57.50. The firm has a market cap of $8.28 billion, a PE ratio of 14.65, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.67.

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

H&R Block Dividend Announcement

The company 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.48%. H&R Block's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.59%.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HRB has been the topic of several recent research reports. StockNews.com downgraded H&R Block from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of H&R Block from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Barrington Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of H&R Block in a report on Friday, November 8th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other H&R Block news, CEO Jeffrey J. Jones II sold 9,722 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.07, for a total value of $613,166.54. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 893,169 shares of the company's stock, valued at $56,332,168.83. This trade represents a 1.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Kellie J. Logerwell sold 8,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,189,910.34. This trade represents a 30.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of H&R Block

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HRB. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in H&R Block by 52.2% during the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,738,190 shares of the company's stock valued at $148,492,000 after buying an additional 939,270 shares during the period. Boston Partners boosted its stake in H&R Block by 30.2% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,270,919 shares of the company's stock valued at $160,614,000 after purchasing an additional 758,827 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its stake in H&R Block by 1,630.9% during the 3rd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 777,264 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,395,000 after purchasing an additional 732,359 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in H&R Block by 39.7% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,131,451 shares of the company's stock valued at $115,418,000 after purchasing an additional 606,250 shares during the period. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in H&R Block by 11.8% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 5,295,911 shares of the company's stock valued at $260,081,000 after purchasing an additional 558,076 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.14% of the company's stock.

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.