Convergence Investment Partners LLC Grows Stake in H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB)

Convergence Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB) by 13.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 29,788 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,559 shares during the period. Convergence Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in H&R Block were worth $1,441,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 3.2% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,844,387 shares of the company’s stock valued at $165,539,000 after purchasing an additional 118,329 shares in the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 110.5% during the third quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,768,425 shares of the company’s stock valued at $119,208,000 after purchasing an additional 1,453,504 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,574,162 shares of the company’s stock valued at $76,142,000 after purchasing an additional 14,268 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 1,133,994 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,851,000 after purchasing an additional 126,248 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 7.4% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 954,038 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,105,000 after purchasing an additional 65,478 shares in the last quarter. 90.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on HRB. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on H&R Block from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. StockNews.com raised H&R Block from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 7th.

H&R Block Trading Down 0.3 %

HRB stock traded down $0.14 during trading on Friday, reaching $46.50. The stock had a trading volume of 1,384,554 shares, compared to its average volume of 810,499. H&R Block, Inc. has a 52 week low of $28.83 and a 52 week high of $52.90. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $47.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $46.41. The firm has a market cap of $6.49 billion, a PE ratio of 12.81, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.70.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported ($1.27) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.58) by $0.31. H&R Block had a negative return on equity of 227.22% and a net margin of 16.98%. The firm had revenue of $179.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $169.45 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($1.37) earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that H&R Block, Inc. will post 4.25 EPS for the current year.

H&R Block Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 5th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 4th. H&R Block’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.26%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Jeffrey J. Jones II sold 85,921 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.21, for a total transaction of $4,228,172.41. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 755,359 shares in the company, valued at $37,171,216.39. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About H&R Block

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.