Block (NYSE:XYZ) Price Target Raised to $82.00

Block (NYSE:XYZ) had its price objective upped by Morgan Stanley from $80.00 to $82.00 in a research report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the technology company’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on XYZ. Wolfe Research upped their price objective on Block from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price target on shares of Block from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $97.00 price objective (up from $85.00) on shares of Block in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Zacks Research cut shares of Block from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on shares of Block from $85.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-three have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $98.36.

Block Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of NYSE XYZ traded up $1.54 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $85.58. The stock had a trading volume of 7,756,635 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,670,644. The business’s 50 day moving average is $77.92 and its 200-day moving average is $71.50. The company has a market cap of $51.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 115.65, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 2.58. Block has a 52 week low of $48.21 and a 52 week high of $88.51. The company has a quick ratio of 2.21, a current ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Block (NYSE:XYZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The technology company reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.45. The firm had revenue of $6.72 billion for the quarter. Block had a net margin of 1.43% and a return on equity of 8.10%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.54 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Block will post 2.75 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Block news, Director Anthony Eisen sold 35,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.50, for a total value of $3,062,500.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,177,672 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $103,046,300. This represents a 2.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 261,686 shares of company stock worth $20,924,307 in the last three months. 11.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Block

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wellington Grp LLC boosted its stake in shares of Block by 60.9% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Grp LLC now owns 17,957 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,320,000 after acquiring an additional 6,798 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Block during the 3rd quarter valued at $399,000. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in shares of Block by 14.4% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 7,585 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $576,000 after purchasing an additional 955 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in Block by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 782,252 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $57,531,000 after purchasing an additional 35,252 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in Block by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 68,798 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $5,059,000 after purchasing an additional 540 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.44% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Block

Here are the key news stories impacting Block this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Several firms raised price targets, reinforcing expectations for further gains. UBS lifted its target to $105, Raymond James to $100 while maintaining an “outperform” rating, and BMO to $102 with a “market perform” rating. Wells Fargo raised its target to $110 and Barclays to $105, both with “overweight” ratings; Argus raised its target to $105 and maintained “buy.” UBS rating Raymond James rating BMO target update Wells Fargo rating Barclays rating Argus rating
• Positive Sentiment: Block reported better-than-expected earnings, with quarterly EPS of $1.13 versus the $0.68 consensus and revenue growth of 9.9% year over year. Shares subsequently reached a 52-week high, and traders bought a large volume of call options—signals of favorable investor expectations. Earnings and 52-week high Call options activity
• Neutral Sentiment: Rothschild & Co Redburn raised its target from $75 to $85 but kept a “neutral” rating, putting its estimate close to the recent share price. Redburn target update
• Negative Sentiment: Block reportedly made another round of job cuts this year, affecting employees in its Cash App businesses. The reductions may raise concerns about execution or operating pressures despite the recent earnings beat. Report on Block job cuts

Block Company Profile

Block, Inc is a financial technology company that provides payment and commerce tools to businesses and financial services for consumers. Its products include Square, a platform offering payment processing, point-of-sale software and related business services, and Cash App, which provides person-to-person payments and other financial features.

The company also owns Afterpay, a buy-now, pay-later service, and TIDAL, a music and entertainment platform. Block serves businesses and consumers in the United States and other markets, with product availability varying by country.

Founded in 2009 as Square by Jack Dorsey and Jim McKelvey, the company adopted the name Block in 2021.