CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp Raises Stock Position in Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ)

CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp grew its position in Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ) by 36.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 36,433 shares of the technology company’s stock after buying an additional 9,807 shares during the period. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp’s holdings in Block were worth $3,096,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. SouthState Corp grew its position in Block by 85.3% in the third quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 391 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in shares of Block by 64.7% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 494 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Block by 67.7% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 394 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Block during the 3rd quarter worth about $46,000. Finally, Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new stake in Block in the 3rd quarter valued at about $57,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.44% of the company’s stock.

Block Price Performance

Shares of SQ opened at $84.83 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 2.07. Block, Inc. has a 1-year low of $55.00 and a 1-year high of $99.26. The stock has a market cap of $52.58 billion, a PE ratio of 47.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 2.51. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $88.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $74.36.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Block in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on shares of Block from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Macquarie boosted their target price on Block from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Block from $87.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt raised Block from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $115.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $97.35.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Amrita Ahuja sold 1,502 shares of Block stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.52, for a total value of $129,953.04. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 242,199 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,955,057.48. The trade was a 0.62 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $80,000.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 88,791 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,103,280. This represents a 1.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 29,981 shares of company stock valued at $2,681,185. Insiders own 10.49% of the company’s stock.

Block Company 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.