Swedbank AB Grows Stake in Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ)

Swedbank AB raised its stake in Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ) by 11.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,040 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,155 shares during the period. Swedbank AB’s holdings in Block were worth $2,822,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Swiss National Bank grew its stake in shares of Block by 0.5% in the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 1,651,886 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $110,891,000 after acquiring an additional 8,200 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service grew its stake in shares of Block by 13.5% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,083,113 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $72,709,000 after acquiring an additional 128,832 shares during the last quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. grew its stake in shares of Block by 1.5% in the third quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 10,233,102 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $686,948,000 after acquiring an additional 147,873 shares during the last quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Block by 13.9% in the second quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC now owns 7,670,523 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $494,672,000 after acquiring an additional 934,588 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its stake in shares of Block by 2.7% in the third quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 541,204 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $35,969,000 after acquiring an additional 14,163 shares during the last quarter. 70.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on SQ shares. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on Block from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on Block from $95.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Block in a research report on Friday, November 15th. New Street Research started coverage on Block in a research report on Monday, September 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $70.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Block from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twenty-three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $91.46.

Block Stock Down 0.3 %

NYSE SQ opened at $88.77 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $75.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $68.47. The company has a quick ratio of 2.07, a current ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Block, Inc. has a 52 week low of $55.00 and a 52 week high of $94.12. The company has a market capitalization of $55.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 2.48.

Insider Activity at Block

In related news, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 1,884 shares of Block stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.41, for a total transaction of $123,232.44. Following the sale, the insider now owns 574,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,605,124.74. This trade represents a 0.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 500 shares of Block stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.00, for a total value of $33,500.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 90,460 shares in the company, valued at $6,060,820. This trade represents a 0.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 29,053 shares of company stock valued at $2,393,972. 10.49% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.