Square (NYSE:SQ) had its target price hoisted by research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $26.00 to $40.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday, The Fly reports. The firm currently has a “hold” rating on the technology company’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price suggests a potential upside of 8.34% from the stock’s current price. The analysts noted that the move was a valuation call.
Several other research firms have also issued reports on SQ. Zacks Investment Research raised Square from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $32.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 3rd. Barclays upped their price target on Square from $28.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 9th. Vetr lowered Square from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $31.08 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, October 4th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Square in a research report on Tuesday, November 21st. They set a “market perform” rating and a $42.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank upped their price target on Square to $37.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and twenty-four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Square presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.45.
Square (NYSE:SQ) traded down $0.83 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $36.92. The company had a trading volume of 12,004,601 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,415,831. The company has a current ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. Square has a twelve month low of $13.53 and a twelve month high of $49.56.
In related news, insider Ajmere Dale sold 20,286 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.12, for a total transaction of $793,588.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 134,518 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,262,344.16. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Hillary B. Smith sold 75,103 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.56, for a total value of $2,820,868.68. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 563,798 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,176,252.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 1,674,130 shares of company stock valued at $61,764,043. Company insiders own 32.68% of the company’s stock.
Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Almanack Investment Partners LLC. bought a new position in Square during the second quarter valued at about $117,000. Hudock Capital Group LLC bought a new position in Square during the third quarter valued at about $157,000. Riverhead Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Square during the second quarter valued at about $149,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in Square by 19.4% during the second quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 6,752 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $158,000 after buying an additional 1,099 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. bought a new position in Square during the third quarter valued at about $205,000. 54.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
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Square Company Profile
Square, Inc (Square) is a commerce ecosystem. The Company enables its sellers start, run and grow their businesses. It combines software with hardware to enable sellers to turn mobile devices and computing devices into payments and point-of-sale solutions. Once a seller downloads the Square Point of Sale mobile application, they can take their first payment.
