Simplicity Solutions LLC Grows Stake in Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ)

Simplicity Solutions LLC boosted its position in shares of Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ) by 33.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,508 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,620 shares during the quarter. Simplicity Solutions LLC’s holdings in Block were worth $503,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in Block during the 1st quarter worth $31,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. increased its holdings in Block by 72.3% during the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 610 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the period. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Block by 38.7% during the 4th quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 616 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Block by 89.6% during the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 635 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Front Row Advisors LLC boosted its position in Block by 67,500.0% during the 3rd quarter. Front Row Advisors LLC now owns 676 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 675 shares in the last quarter. 70.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 4,514 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.41, for a total value of $353,942.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 477,290 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,424,308.90. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Amrita Ahuja sold 2,581 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.30, for a total value of $165,958.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 201,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,972,782.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 4,514 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.41, for a total value of $353,942.74. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 477,290 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,424,308.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 363,801 shares of company stock valued at $27,284,175. 10.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $88.00 target price (up previously from $86.00) on shares of Block in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. KeyCorp increased their target price on Block from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. BTIG Research raised Block from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $60.00 target price (down previously from $62.00) on shares of Block in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised Block from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $95.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Block has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $84.41.

Block Stock Performance

Shares of SQ stock opened at $72.05 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $44.36 billion, a PE ratio of 432.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 2.55. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $76.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $65.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. Block, Inc. has a 52-week low of $38.85 and a 52-week high of $87.52.

Block (NYSE:SQ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The technology company reported $0.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.02 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $5.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.69 billion. Block had a return on equity of 0.63% and a net margin of 0.04%. On average, equities analysts expect that Block, Inc. will post 1.02 EPS for the current year.

Block Profile

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.