H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB) Shares Acquired by Algert Global LLC

Algert Global LLC lifted its holdings in shares of H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB) by 413.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 72,110 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 58,057 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC owned 0.05% of H&R Block worth $4,583,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HRB. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in H&R Block by 52.2% during the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,738,190 shares of the company’s stock worth $148,492,000 after purchasing an additional 939,270 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners raised its stake in H&R Block by 30.2% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,270,919 shares of the company’s stock worth $160,614,000 after acquiring an additional 758,827 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its position in H&R Block by 1,630.9% in the third quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 777,264 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,395,000 after acquiring an additional 732,359 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in H&R Block by 39.7% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,131,451 shares of the company’s stock valued at $115,418,000 after acquiring an additional 606,250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 576.5% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 580,227 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,496,000 after purchasing an additional 494,457 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.14% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at H&R Block

In other H&R Block news, VP Kellie J. Logerwell sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.41, for a total transaction of $515,280.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,474 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,189,910.34. The trade was a 30.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jeffrey J. Jones II sold 9,722 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.07, for a total transaction of $613,166.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 893,169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $56,332,168.83. This represents a 1.08 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

H&R Block Stock Performance

Shares of HRB stock opened at $58.30 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $61.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $57.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.99 billion, a PE ratio of 14.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.67. H&R Block, Inc. has a 52-week low of $42.28 and a 52-week high of $68.45.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported ($1.17) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.13) by ($0.04). H&R Block had a negative return on equity of 212.45% and a net margin of 16.19%. The company had revenue of $193.81 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $188.78 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($1.05) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that H&R Block, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

H&R Block declared that its Board of Directors has authorized 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 repurchase up to 16.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

H&R Block Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be issued a $0.375 dividend. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 5th. H&R Block’s payout ratio is 36.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on HRB. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on H&R Block from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of H&R Block in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of H&R Block from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th.

H&R Block 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.