Norges Bank Invests $69.44 Million in H&R Block, Inc. $HRB

Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,593,419 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $69,441,000. Norges Bank owned about 1.26% of H&R Block at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of HRB. Xponance Inc. grew its stake in H&R Block by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 17,403 shares of the company’s stock valued at $880,000 after buying an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE lifted its position in H&R Block by 2.1% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 12,601 shares of the company’s stock worth $637,000 after acquiring an additional 261 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 0.6% during the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 46,171 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,335,000 after acquiring an additional 286 shares during the period. Clearstead Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 134.4% during the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 511 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its position in shares of H&R Block by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 22,496 shares of the company’s stock valued at $980,000 after purchasing an additional 309 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.14% of the company’s stock.

H&R Block Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of H&R Block stock opened at $38.00 on Friday. H&R Block, Inc. has a twelve month low of $28.16 and a twelve month high of $58.38. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $34.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 0.35.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $6.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.77 by $0.25. H&R Block had a net margin of 18.90% and a negative return on equity of 211.62%. The business had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.38 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. H&R Block has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.20 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that H&R Block, Inc. will post 5.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

H&R Block Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 3rd will be paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 3rd. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. H&R Block’s payout ratio is 29.89%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Zacks Research upgraded H&R Block from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 target price on shares of H&R Block in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of H&R Block in a research note on Friday, May 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, H&R Block currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $41.00.

About H&R Block

H&R Block (NYSE: HRB) is a leading provider of tax preparation services and software solutions, serving individual and small-business clients through a combination of retail offices, online platforms and mobile applications. The company offers assisted tax preparation at its network of retail offices, where clients work with trained tax professionals, as well as do-it-yourself (DIY) software and online filing services designed to guide users through the complexities of federal and state tax returns.

Founded in 1955 by brothers Henry W.