Shares of payment processing company Block (NYSE:SQ) gained more than 13% in Thursday’s after-hours trading despite posting lower-than-expected Q4 earnings. Notably, the company raised its profitability forecast for 2024. It expects an adjusted operating income of at least $1.15 billion, up from the preliminary outlook of $875 million. Moreover, adjusted EBITDA is expected to be at least $2.63 billion versus earlier guidance of $2.4 billion. As the company raises its profit outlook, it’s the right time to delve into its ownership structure.
Now, according to TipRanks’ ownership page, public companies and individual investors own 38.77% of SQ. They are followed by other institutional investors, mutual funds, and insiders at 38.17%, 19.78%, and 3.28%, respectively.
Digging Deeper into Block’s Ownership Structure
Looking closely at institutions (Mutual Funds and Other Institutional Investors), Vanguard owns a 6.17% stake in Block stock. Next up is Vanguard Index Funds, which holds a 5.45% stake in the company.
Among the institutions, the hedge fund Confidence Signal is Very Negative on SQ stock based on the activity of 26 hedge funds. Notably, Hedge Funds decreased their holdings by 16.5M shares in the last quarter.
What is the Future of SQ Stock?
SQ stock has underperformed the broader market averages over the past year and is down about 8.4%. However, Wall Street analysts are bullish about its prospects. With 19 Buy and four Hold recommendations, SQ stock has a Strong Buy consensus rating.
Analysts’ average price target of $84.43 implies 24.23% upside potential from current levels.
Conclusion
TipRanks’ Ownership tool shows Block’s ownership structure by category, enabling investors to make well-informed investing decisions.
