H&R Block (NYSE: HRB) was upgraded by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley to an “equal weight” rating in a report issued on Friday.

The analysts wrote, “We assume HRB grows assisted volumes 4.4%, driven by market growth 1% above IRS forecasts (IRS officials have told us its latest forecasts include upside from the Affordable Care Act, but IRS has not been perfect at forecasting in the past) and HRB’sassisted business takes market share because of the added complexity / HRB’s smart marketing. We do not include pricing upside from the ACA – we believe it’s still unclear if the IRS will require another form, with HRB management on Thursday’s call noting that Massachusetts is not a good proxy for the rest of the country.”

H&R Block traded up 8.17% on Friday, hitting $27.02. H&R Block has a 52-week low of $14.35 and a 52-week high of $25.59. The stock’s 50-day moving average is currently $23.77. The company has a market cap of $7.330 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.24.

H&R Block last released its earnings data on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported ($0.22) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the analysts’ consensus estimate of ($0.03) by $0.19. The company had revenue of $472.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $563.60 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.01) earnings per share. H&R Block’s revenue was down 28.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that H&R Block will post $1.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HRB has been the subject of a number of other recent research reports. Analysts at Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of H&R Block in a research note to investors on Friday. They now have a $29.00 price target on the stock, up previously from $27.00. Separately, analysts at Compass Point reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of H&R Block in a research note to investors on Friday, March 1st. They now have a $28.00 price target on the stock.

Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, one has assigned an overweight rating, two have issued a hold rating, and one has given a sell rating to the company’s stock. The stock presently has a consensus rating of “overweight” and an average price target of $25.17.

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which is scheduled for Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 18th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th.

H&R Block, Inc. (H&R Block) has subsidiaries that provide tax, banking, and business and consulting services.

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