Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC Raises Stake in H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB)

Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC raised its stake in H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB) by 29.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 7,222 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,623 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC’s holdings in H&R Block were worth $382,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new position in shares of H&R Block during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Spire Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of H&R Block during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of H&R Block in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in H&R Block by 64.5% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 658 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 258 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its stake in H&R Block by 52.6% during the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 838 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 289 shares in the last quarter. 90.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

H&R Block Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE HRB opened at $54.76 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.46, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.73. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $53.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $56.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.09, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.39. H&R Block, Inc. has a 52-week low of $45.87 and a 52-week high of $68.45.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported ($1.73) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.59) by ($0.14). H&R Block had a negative return on equity of 179.15% and a net margin of 14.71%. Sell-side analysts expect that H&R Block, Inc. will post 5.25 earnings per share for the current year.

H&R Block Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th were given a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.74%. H&R Block’s payout ratio is 41.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on HRB shares. StockNews.com downgraded H&R Block from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $70.00 target price on shares of H&R Block in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th.

H&R Block Profile

H&R Block, Inc engages in the provision of tax return preparation solutions, financial products and small business solutions. The company was founded by Henry W. Bloch and Richard A. Bloch on January 25, 1955, and is headquartered in Kansas City, MO.