Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Acquires 45,202 Shares of H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB)

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board grew its holdings in H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB) by 63.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 116,798 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 45,202 shares during the quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board owned 0.08% of H&R Block worth $4,117,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of HRB. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of H&R Block in the first quarter worth about $29,000. OLD Mission Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of H&R Block during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Belpointe Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of H&R Block by 68.3% during the first quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 998 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 405 shares during the period. Tradition Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of H&R Block by 149.8% during the first quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,034 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 620 shares during the period. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in H&R Block by 149.5% in the first quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,355 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 812 shares in the last quarter. 90.89% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at H&R Block

In other news, CEO Jeffrey J. Jones II sold 91,192 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.00, for a total value of $3,465,296.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 812,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,861,700. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, VP Kellie J. Logerwell sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.61, for a total value of $316,880.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 27,721 shares in the company, valued at $1,098,028.81. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Jeffrey J. Jones II sold 91,192 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.00, for a total value of $3,465,296.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 812,150 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,861,700. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

H&R Block Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HRB traded down $0.23 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $38.96. 520,787 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,602,363. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 46.44. H&R Block, Inc. has a 12 month low of $28.83 and a 12 month high of $45.93. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $35.91 and its 200 day moving average price is $34.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.73 billion, a PE ratio of 10.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.63.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 15th. The company reported $2.05 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.88 by $0.17. H&R Block had a negative return on equity of 263.99% and a net margin of 15.95%. The company had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.43 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that H&R Block, Inc. will post 4.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

H&R Block Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 7th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is a positive change from H&R Block’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 6th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.29%. H&R Block’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on HRB. Barrington Research raised their price target on H&R Block from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 16th. StockNews.com began coverage on H&R Block in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on H&R Block from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 16th.

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.