Block price target lowered to $77 from $83 at Piper Sandler

Piper Sandler lowered the firm’s price target on Block to $77 from $83 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares ahead of the Q3 report. Consumer lenders and payments companies have underperformed the market in recent months as higher rates have increased near-term recession fears, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm believes a recession with rising unemployment “remains a significant overhang for consumer lenders and the market in general.” In addition, Piper has become increasingly concerned higher interest rates and the re-start of student debt payments could present an incremental headwind to spending in early 2024. It expects these headwinds to keep valuation multiples “subdued” in the near-term before improving comps can lead to more reasonable multiples.