H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB) Stock Holdings Decreased by Xponance Inc.

Xponance Inc. lessened its position in H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB) by 33.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,846 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,396 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in H&R Block were worth $1,022,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 42.3% in the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 49,650 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,438,000 after purchasing an additional 14,760 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its stake in H&R Block by 270.7% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 16,319 shares of the company’s stock worth $885,000 after acquiring an additional 11,917 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in H&R Block by 576.5% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 580,227 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,496,000 after acquiring an additional 494,457 shares during the period. Dorsey Wright & Associates purchased a new position in H&R Block during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,096,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 24.5% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 94,270 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,629,000 after purchasing an additional 18,556 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.14% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of H&R Block from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of H&R Block in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on H&R Block from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th.

H&R Block Price Performance

NYSE HRB opened at $63.64 on Friday. H&R Block, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $39.20 and a fifty-two week high of $68.45. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $60.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.07. The firm has a market cap of $8.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.46, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.27.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 15th. The company reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. H&R Block had a negative return on equity of 220.05% and a net margin of 16.49%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.05 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that H&R Block, Inc. will post 5.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

H&R Block declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, August 15th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 16.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

H&R Block Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, September 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.375 per share. This is an increase from H&R Block’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 5th. H&R Block’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.32%.

Insider Activity at H&R Block

In other H&R Block news, CFO Tony G. Bowen sold 79,259 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.17, for a total transaction of $5,165,309.03. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 90,095 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,871,491.15. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, VP Kellie J. Logerwell sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.41, for a total value of $515,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,474 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,189,910.34. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Tony G. Bowen sold 79,259 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.17, for a total transaction of $5,165,309.03. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 90,095 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,871,491.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 160,902 shares of company stock worth $9,970,442. 1.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

H&R Block Company Profile

H&R Block, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides assisted income tax return preparation and do-it-yourself (DIY) tax return preparation services and products to the general public primarily in the United States, Canada, and Australia. It offers assisted income tax return preparation and related services through a system of retail offices operated directly by the company or its franchisees.