Block (NYSE:SQ) Given New $108.00 Price Target at Citigroup

Block (NYSE:SQ) had its price target lifted by Citigroup from $90.00 to $108.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the technology company’s stock. Citigroup’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 27.31% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on Block from $90.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on Block from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. BMO Capital Markets lowered Block from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $94.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, November 25th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Block in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Block from $105.00 to $100.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and twenty-seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $97.35.

Block Trading Up 2.9 %

SQ opened at $84.83 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.58 billion, a PE ratio of 47.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 2.51. 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 has a 12-month low of $55.00 and a 12-month high of $99.26. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $88.99 and its 200 day moving average price is $74.36.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Amrita Ahuja sold 1,502 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.52, for a total value of $129,953.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 242,199 shares in the company, valued at $20,955,057.48. This trade represents a 0.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Chrysty Esperanza sold 2,865 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total value of $272,175.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 85,235 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,097,325. The trade was a 3.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 29,981 shares of company stock valued at $2,681,185 over the last three months. Company insiders own 10.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Block in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $443,000. LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Block by 10.1% in the second quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 526,501 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $33,954,000 after purchasing an additional 48,107 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its position in shares of Block by 1.8% in the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 196,456 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $12,669,000 after buying an additional 3,479 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Block by 5.4% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 266,067 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $17,159,000 after buying an additional 13,649 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Block by 54.5% during the second quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 14,168 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $914,000 after buying an additional 5,000 shares in the last quarter. 70.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.