Intech Investment Management LLC Raises Stock Position in Block, Inc. $XYZ

Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Block, Inc. (NYSE:XYZ) by 54.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 26,129 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,261 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Block were worth $1,888,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cibc World Market Inc. raised its position in shares of Block by 24.0% in the third quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 179,271 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $12,956,000 after acquiring an additional 34,678 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd acquired a new position in Block in the 3rd quarter worth about $5,383,000. New York Life Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Block during the third quarter worth approximately $5,400,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Block by 2,385.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 612,358 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $44,255,000 after purchasing an additional 587,719 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hartford Investment Management Co. acquired a new stake in Block in the 3rd quarter valued at $2,323,000. 70.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Block Trading Up 3.8%

NYSE:XYZ opened at $65.31 on Thursday. Block, Inc. has a 12-month low of $44.27 and a 12-month high of $82.50. The company has a current ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $61.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $67.92. The firm has a market cap of $39.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.10, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 2.65.

Block (NYSE:XYZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The technology company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $6.25 billion for the quarter. Block had a net margin of 5.40% and a return on equity of 6.66%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.71 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Block, Inc. will post 2.54 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on XYZ shares. Zacks Research lowered Block from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Block from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Block from $55.00 to $51.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Block from $105.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Compass Point upgraded Block from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have issued a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $82.79.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 1,173 shares of Block stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.09, for a total value of $76,350.57. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 98,412 shares in the company, valued at $6,405,637.08. The trade was a 1.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 10,349 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $517,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 503,784 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,189,200. The trade was a 2.01% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 16,797 shares of company stock valued at $940,298. 10.85% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Block Profile

Block (NYSE:XYZ) is a financial technology company that builds products and services to facilitate electronic payments, commerce, and consumer finance. Its principal business lines include a seller-focused ecosystem that provides point-of-sale hardware and software, payment processing, invoicing, payroll and lending services, and a consumer-facing platform that offers peer-to-peer payments, banking-like features, and investing. Block’s portfolio also encompasses music streaming and buy-now-pay-later capabilities through businesses acquired to broaden its reach beyond core payments.

The company was founded as Square in 2009 by Jack Dorsey and Jim McKelvey and later rebranded to Block to reflect a diversified set of businesses across payments, consumer finance, and emerging technologies.