RF&L Wealth Management LLC Cuts Holdings in Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ)

RF&L Wealth Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ) by 45.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 4,000 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 3,275 shares during the quarter. RF&L Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Block were worth $340,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Swiss National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Block by 0.5% during the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 1,651,886 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $110,891,000 after buying an additional 8,200 shares during the period. National Pension Service increased its holdings in Block by 13.5% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,083,113 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $72,709,000 after buying an additional 128,832 shares in the last quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. raised its stake in shares of Block by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 10,233,102 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $686,948,000 after buying an additional 147,873 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Block by 6.2% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 253,787 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $17,037,000 after acquiring an additional 14,822 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lone Pine Capital LLC boosted its stake in Block by 13.9% during the second quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC now owns 7,670,523 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $494,672,000 after buying an additional 934,588 shares during the last quarter. 70.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Owen Britton Jennings sold 2,836 shares of Block stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.38, for a total transaction of $253,481.68. Following the sale, the insider now owns 195,449 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,469,231.62. The trade was a 1.43 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Chrysty Esperanza sold 2,964 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $237,120.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 88,607 shares in the company, valued at $7,088,560. The trade was a 3.24 % 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 quarter. Company insiders own 10.49% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SQ has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Block in a report on Friday, November 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on Block from $90.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Block from $87.00 to $102.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Block from $90.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $88.00 target price on shares of Block in a report on Monday, October 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and twenty-seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Block currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $97.68.

Block Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SQ opened at $87.57 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.07, a current ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company has a market cap of $54.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 2.51. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $89.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $74.43. Block, Inc. has a 52 week low of $55.00 and a 52 week high of $99.26.

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.