H&R Block (NYSE:HRB) Earns “Outperform” Rating from Barrington Research

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating restated by Barrington Research in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $70.00 price objective on the stock. Barrington Research’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 17.10% from the company’s current price.

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of H&R Block from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th.

H&R Block Stock Performance

Shares of HRB stock opened at $59.78 on Friday. H&R Block has a fifty-two week low of $46.46 and a fifty-two week high of $68.45. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $55.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $56.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.46, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The firm has a market cap of $8.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.47, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.39.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported ($1.73) EPS 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%. Analysts predict that H&R Block will post 5.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Jeffrey J. Jones II sold 53,810 shares of H&R Block stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.28, for a total value of $3,405,096.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 844,790 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,458,311.20. The trade was a 5.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its position in shares of H&R Block by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 4,263 shares of the company’s stock valued at $225,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in H&R Block by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 12,358 shares of the company’s stock valued at $653,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in H&R Block by 64.5% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 658 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its position in H&R Block by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 6,909 shares of the company’s stock worth $365,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia increased its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 6,170 shares of the company’s stock worth $326,000 after purchasing an additional 261 shares during the period. 90.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

H&R Block Company 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.