June 29, 2023
Top 10 Stock H&R Block Buy Recommendation
How to read the ranks
For every stock, we judge its performance against its peers and rank it on a scale of 1 to 100. The higher the rank, the better the stock performs than its peers. And, we do this for six investment strategies:
Value - shows how good of a value the stock is. Green is "inexpensive"; red is "expensive".
Growth - shows a company's growth potential. Green is "high growth" expected; red is "tough times ahead".
Safety - relates to the amount of debt a company has. Green is low debt level; red is high debt level.
Combined Financial - this isn't an average of the first three ranks but rather a consolidated view across several financial indicators. Green = good; red = tread carefully.
(NEW) Sentiment - quantifies professional analyst ratings and holdings as well as market pulse. Green = positive sentiment; red = skepticism (Only available to Premium Subscribers).
(NEW) 360° View - the ultimate rating with all financial and non-financial indicators.
Snapshot: H&R Block – Top 10 Stock in S&P Mid-Cap Index
H&R Block is listed as a top 10 stock on June 29, 2023 in the market index S&P MIDCAP because of its high performance in at least one of the Obermatt investment strategies. While half the consolidated Obermatt Ranks are above-average, investor sentiment is negative and growth performance is below market average, both a sign for caution. Based on the Obermatt 360° View of 73 (high 73% performer), Obermatt assesses an overall buy recommendation for H&R Block on June 29, 2023.
Snapshot: Obermatt Ranks
| Country | USA |
| Industry | Specialized Consumer Services |
| Index | Dividends USA, Diversity USA, S&P MIDCAP |
| Size class | X-Large |
When Obermatt identifies the Top 10 stocks in a market, it’s based on a certain investment strategy. The best performing stocks usually aren’t the ones that everyone is talking about (those are often "over-priced" and have low Value ranks).
For each investment strategy, we provide you with more detailed analysis and our recommendation. You see the ranks of the top 10 stocks ranked by that particular investment strategy (360° View, Sentiment, Value, Growth, Safety and Combined Financial Performance).
360° View: Obermatt 360° View H&R Block Buy
| 360 METRICS | June 29, 2023 | |||||||
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| VALUE | ||||||||
| VALUE | 100 |
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| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 15 |
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| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 72 |
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| SENTIMENT | ||||||||
| SENTIMENT | 49 |
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| 360° VIEW | ||||||||
| 360° VIEW | 73 |
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ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt 360° View of 73 (better than 73% compared with alternatives), overall professional sentiment and financial characteristics for the stock H&R Block are above average. The 360° View is based on consolidating four consolidated indicators, with half the metrics below and half above average for H&R Block. The consolidated Value Rank has an attractive rank of 100, which means that the share price of H&R Block is on the lower side compared with the typical size in indicators such as revenues, profits, and invested capital. This means the stock price is lower than for 100% of alternative stocks in the same industry. The company is also safely financed with a Safety rank of 72. But the professional market sentiment is below average compared with other stock investment alternatives with a Sentiment Rank of 49. Professional investors are more confident in 51% other stocks. The consolidated Growth Rank also has a low rank of 15, which means that the company is below average in terms of growth momentum when looking at financial metrics such as revenue, profit, invested capital growth, and stock returns. 85 of its competitors have better growth. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated 360° View of 73, H&R Block is better positioned than 73% of all alternative stock investment opportunities based on the Obermatt Method. The picture is mixed here. The stock seems to be a good value (Value Rank of 100), and the financing structure is on the safer side (Safety Rank of 72). However, sentiment in the professional investor community is below-average (Sentiment Rank of 49), as is the growth momentum for the company (Growth Rank of 15). Since the company is good value and the share price low, it should attract investors, yet professionals are skeptical. Even though the financing structure is not as important as Value, Growth, and Sentiment, investors should still be careful with this decision and conduct further research if they are serious about investing in this company. ...read more
Sentiment Strategy: Professional Market Sentiment for H&R Block only reserved
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Sentiment Rank of 49 (better than 49% compared with alternatives), overall professional sentiment and engagement for the stock H&R Block is below industry average. The Sentiment Rank is based on consolidating four sentiment indicators, with half of the metrics below and half above average for H&R Block. Analyst Opinions are at a rank of 38 (worse than 62% of alternative investments), which means that currently, stock research analysts tend to warn against investing in the stock of the company. But they are changing their opinions! Analyst Opinions Change has a rank of 50, which means that stock research experts are more positive in their investment recommendations in the company. In other words, they are getting more optimistic of stock investments in H&R Block. More encouragingly, the Professional Investors rank is 82, which means that professional investors hold more stock in this company than in 82% of alternative investment opportunities. Pros tend to favor investing in this company. But Market Pulse is on the lower side with a rank of 34, which means that the current professional news and professional social networks are on the negative side when discussing this company (more negative news than for 66% of competitors). ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Sentiment Rank of 49 (less encouraging than 51% compared with investment alternatives), H&R Block has a reputation among professional investors that is below that of its competitors. The sentiment signals are mixed for H&R Block. While analysts and the news channels are negative, there is a change in what analysts think. Above-average institutional investors in this company support them. Sentiment signals remain mixed with analysts and news channels pessimistic, though improving, and professional investors above average. ...read more
Value Strategy: H&R Block Stock Price Value at the top
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 100 (better than 100% compared with alternatives) for 2023, H&R Block shares are significantly less expensive than comparable stocks. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with three out of four indicators above average for H&R Block. Price-to-Profit (also referred to as price to earnings, P/E ratio) is 95 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is lower than for 95% of comparable companies, indicating a good value concerning H&R Block's profit levels. The same is valid for the expected Price-to-Book Capital ratio (also referred to as market-to-book ratio) with a Price-to-Capital Rank of 100, and for Dividend Yield with a Dividend Yield Rank of 96. But, compared with other companies in the same industry, the stock price is higher than average as regards expected revenues; only 62% of all competitors have an even higher stock price as regards to sales revenues (a Price-to-Sales Rank of 38). Profits, the level of invested capital, and dividend policy suggest that this stock is attractively priced. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 100, is a buy recommendation based on H&R Block's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. Since it is on the expensive side for Price-to-Sales, it may mean that H&R Block has pricing power in its distribution market because it can charge higher prices than its competitors. If this is the case, all four value indicators are positive signals for purchasing H&R Block shares. ...read more
Growth Strategy: H&R Block Growth Momentum negative
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 15 (better than 15% compared with alternatives), H&R Block shows one of the most restricted growth dynamics in its industry. There is little momentum in this company. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with all four metrics below average for H&R Block. Sales Growth has a rank of 25, which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow less than 75% of its competitors. The same is valid for Profit Growth, with a rank of 21, and Capital Growth with 43. In addition, Stock Returns have a below market rank of 37, which means that the stock returns have recently been below 63% of alternative investments. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 15, is a sell recommendation for growth and momentum investors. These are all bad growth momentum indicators. These are negative signals for investors interested in growth companies. Value is likely good for this company, as investors may have left this stock in the cold. If that is the case, investors should look at the company's outlook, especially Sentiment performance, because it may be a turnaround situation that could entail above-average stock returns in the future. But it remains a risky bet, as no growth signals are in the green zone yet. ...read more
Safety Strategy: H&R Block Debt Financing Safety above-average
| SAFETY METRICS | June 29, 2023 | |||||||
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| LEVERAGE | ||||||||
| LEVERAGE | 28 |
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| REFINANCING | ||||||||
| REFINANCING | 65 |
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| LIQUIDITY | ||||||||
| LIQUIDITY | 90 |
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| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | ||||||||
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | 72 |
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ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 72 (better than 72% compared with alternatives), the company H&R Block has financing practices on the safer side, which mean that their overall debt burden is lower than average. This doesn't mean that the business of H&R Block is safe, it only means that the company is on the safer side regarding possible bankruptcy, assuming that public reporting is correct. The Safety Rank is based on consolidating three financing indicators, with two out of three indicators above-average for H&R Block. Refinancing is at 65, meaning the portion of the debt that is about to be refinanced is below average. It has less debt in the refinancing stage than 65% of its competitors. Liquidity is also good at 90, meaning the company generates more profit to service its debt than 90% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is safer when it comes to debt service. However, Leverage is rather large at 28, which means the company has an above-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has more debt than 72% of its competitors. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 72 (better than 72% compared with alternatives), H&R Block has a financing structure that is safer than that of its competitors. This is not bad if things go well. The higher debt level means better returns to shareholders if things go well. Many top-performing companies operate with higher debt levels, and H&R Block could be in that group. But if you expect the environment to turn rougher, the higher leverage could become a problem. The same is valid if you expect interest rates to rise. That could squeeze shareholder returns, which so far have benefitted from better conditions. ...read more
Combined financial peformance: H&R Block Top Financial Performance
| COMBINED PERFORMANCE | June 29, 2023 | |||||||
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| VALUE | ||||||||
| VALUE | 100 |
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| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 15 |
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| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 90 |
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| COMBINED | ||||||||
| COMBINED | 78 |
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ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 78 (better than 78% compared with investment alternatives), H&R Block (Specialized Consumer Services, USA) shares have much better financial characteristics than comparable stocks. Shares of H&R Block are a good value (attractively priced) with a consolidated Value Rank of 100 (better than 100% of alternatives), are safely financed (Safety Rank of 72, which means low debt burdens), but show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 15). ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 78, is a strong buy recommendation based on H&R Block's financial characteristics. As the company H&R Block's key financial metrics exhibit good value (Obermatt Value Rank of 100) but low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 15) while being safely financed (Obermatt Safety Rank of 72), it may be a safer investment because companies with low debt can better withstand times of crises. Yet the good value, better than 100% of comparable companies, may also indicate that the company's future is challenging. If you believe that low growth is temporary or just due to a specific current event, you may conclude that the good value of the stock provides an attractive investment opportunity and the downside is limited due to below-average financing risks. ...read more
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