Block (NYSE:XYZ – Get Free Report) had its target price hoisted by investment analysts at Oppenheimer from $85.00 to $89.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the technology company’s stock. Oppenheimer’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 37.48% from the company’s current price.
XYZ has been the subject of a number of other reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Block from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 2nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Block in a report on Monday, December 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Block in a research note on Friday. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $95.00 price target on shares of Block in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane upgraded Block from a “hold” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $83.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have assigned a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $82.59.
Read Our Latest Stock Report on XYZ
Block Price Performance
Block (NYSE:XYZ – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The technology company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.39. The company had revenue of $6.25 billion for the quarter. Block had a return on equity of 5.54% and a net margin of 12.99%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.71 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Block will post 2.54 EPS for the current year.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other news, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 1,173 shares of Block stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.09, for a total value of $76,350.57. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 98,412 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,405,637.08. This trade represents a 1.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Brian Grassadonia sold 10,349 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $517,450.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 503,784 shares in the company, valued at $25,189,200. This trade represents a 2.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 16,797 shares of company stock worth $940,298 in the last quarter. 10.85% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Institutional Trading of Block
Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Traub Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Block in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC bought a new position in Block in the second quarter worth about $26,000. City Holding Co. purchased a new stake in Block in the third quarter worth about $27,000. Cromwell Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in Block in the third quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Block during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Institutional investors own 70.44% of the company’s stock.
Key Stories Impacting Block
Here are the key news stories impacting Block this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Shares jumped after Block announced it will cut roughly 4,000 jobs (about half its staff) as it leans into AI and smaller teams; investors are pricing in faster efficiency and lower ongoing expenses. Jack Dorsey’s Block laying off more than 4,000 employees, about half of its workforce
- Positive Sentiment: Block reported Q4 EPS of $0.65, beating consensus of $0.26 and signaling better-than-expected near-term profitability despite modest revenue growth; that helped support the rally. Block (XYZ) Meets Q4 Earnings Estimates
- Positive Sentiment: Management highlighted AI productivity gains (CFO said engineer output up ~40%), reinforcing the narrative that layoffs will be accompanied by material efficiency improvements. CEO Jack Dorsey issued a dire warning about AI’s impact as he cuts Block by almost half
- Neutral Sentiment: CEO Jack Dorsey framed the move as correcting COVID-era overhiring and flattening org structure for the AI era — context that explains management rationale but leaves execution risks unresolved. Jack Dorsey’s mea culpa on Block layoffs: ‘We overhired’
- Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary and futures trading were mixed, meaning broader risk sentiment (inflation prints, macro) could influence how durable the stock move is. Stock Market Today: Dow Jones, S&P 500 Future Drop Ahead Of January Wholesale Inflation Print—Netflix, Block, Rocket Lab In Focus
- Negative Sentiment: Block expects roughly $450M–$500M of restructuring and severance charges tied to the layoffs, which will weigh on near-term free cash flow and reported results. Jack Dorsey’s Block to Lay Off 4,000 Employees in AI Remake
- Negative Sentiment: Shareholder-watchdog activity: Halper Sadeh is probing potential fiduciary breaches, introducing legal/PR risk that could distract management or produce claims. Halper Sadeh LLC Encourages Block, Inc. Shareholders To Contact The Firm To Discuss Their Rights
About Block
Block (NYSE:XYZ) is a financial technology company that builds products and services to facilitate electronic payments, commerce, and consumer finance. Its principal business lines include a seller-focused ecosystem that provides point-of-sale hardware and software, payment processing, invoicing, payroll and lending services, and a consumer-facing platform that offers peer-to-peer payments, banking-like features, and investing. Block’s portfolio also encompasses music streaming and buy-now-pay-later capabilities through businesses acquired to broaden its reach beyond core payments.
The company was founded as Square in 2009 by Jack Dorsey and Jim McKelvey and later rebranded to Block to reflect a diversified set of businesses across payments, consumer finance, and emerging technologies.
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