Versor Investments LP Boosts Stock Position in H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB)

Versor Investments LP grew its position in shares of H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB - Free Report) by 102.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 31,900 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 16,140 shares during the quarter. Versor Investments LP's holdings in H&R Block were worth $2,027,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in HRB. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in shares of H&R Block by 42.3% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 49,650 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,438,000 after buying an additional 14,760 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 270.7% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 16,319 shares of the company's stock valued at $885,000 after purchasing an additional 11,917 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in H&R Block by 576.5% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 580,227 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,496,000 after purchasing an additional 494,457 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in H&R Block by 24.5% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 94,270 shares of the company's stock worth $4,629,000 after purchasing an additional 18,556 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB bought a new stake in H&R Block in the 1st quarter worth approximately $10,581,000. Institutional investors own 90.14% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on HRB. Barrington Research reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of H&R Block in a report on Friday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of H&R Block from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on H&R Block from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th.

Insider Activity at H&R Block

In other news, CFO Tony G. Bowen sold 79,259 shares of H&R Block stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.17, for a total value of $5,165,309.03. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 90,095 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,871,491.15. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other H&R Block news, CEO Jeffrey J. Jones II sold 9,722 shares of the 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. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Tony G. Bowen sold 79,259 shares of H&R Block stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.17, for a total transaction of $5,165,309.03. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 90,095 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,871,491.15. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders 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 Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HRB traded up $2.08 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $61.26. The stock had a trading volume of 2,188,602 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,169,220. The company has a market capitalization of $8.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.67. H&R Block, Inc. has a 12-month low of $42.28 and a 12-month high of $68.45. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $62.09 and a 200-day moving average of $57.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.46, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.27.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The company reported $1.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.74 by $0.15. H&R Block had a negative return on equity of 231.57% and a net margin of 16.19%. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.05 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that H&R Block, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

H&R Block Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be given a dividend of $0.375 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.45%. H&R Block's dividend payout ratio is 36.59%.

H&R Block announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, August 15th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 16.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.