Block (NYSE:SQ) Stock Rating Lowered by BMO Capital Markets

BMO Capital Markets downgraded shares of Block (NYSE:SQ) from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a report issued on Monday, MarketBeat reports. The firm currently has $100.00 price target on the technology company’s stock, up from their prior price target of $94.00.

SQ has been the topic of a number of other reports. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $99.00 price objective on shares of Block in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Block from $100.00 to $92.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Block in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Needham & Company LLC increased their target price on shares of Block from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Block from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twenty-three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $91.46.

Block Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of SQ stock opened at $88.78 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.88, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 2.48. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $75.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $68.61. Block has a 1 year low of $55.00 and a 1 year high of $94.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 2.07.

Insider Buying and Selling at Block

In related news, insider Chrysty Esperanza sold 2,964 shares of Block stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $237,120.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 88,607 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,088,560. The trade was a 3.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.00, for a total transaction of $33,500.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 90,460 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,060,820. The trade was a 0.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 29,053 shares of company stock worth $2,393,972 over the last three months. Company insiders own 10.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Block

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. SouthState Corp lifted its holdings in Block by 85.3% in the 3rd quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 391 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC raised its holdings in shares of Block by 64.7% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 494 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Block in the first quarter worth $34,000. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new stake in Block in the second quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new position in Block during the 2nd quarter valued at $44,000. 70.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Block

Square, Inc provides payment and point-of-sale solutions in the United States and internationally. The company's commerce ecosystem includes point-of-sale software and hardware that enables sellers to turn mobile and computing devices into payment and point-of-sale solutions. It offers hardware products, including Magstripe reader, which enables swiped transactions of magnetic stripe cards; Contactless and chip reader that accepts EMV® chip cards and Near Field Communication payments; Chip card reader, which accepts EMV® chip cards and enables swiped transactions of magnetic stripe cards; Square Stand, which enables an iPad to be used as a payment terminal or full point of sale solution; and Square Register that combines its hardware, point-of-sale software, and payments technology, as well as managed payments solutions.