H&R Block, Inc. (HRB) reported impressive fourth-quarter fiscal 2024 results, wherein both earnings and revenues surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate. HRB's adjusted earnings (adjusting 8 cents from non-recurring items) of $1.9 per share surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 10.5% but declined 7.8% from the year-ago quarter. Revenues of $1.1 billion beat the consensus estimate by 2.6% and increased 3% on a year-over-year basis. H&R Block's shares have gained 48.2% over the past year, significantly out ...

Here at Zacks, we focus on our proven ranking system, which places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions, to find winning stocks. But we also understand that investors develop their own strategies, so we are constantly looking at the latest trends in value, growth, and momentum to find strong companies for our readers. Looking at the history of these trends, perhaps none is more beloved than value investing. This strategy simply looks to identify companies that are being undervalued by th ...

Financial Data and Key Metrics - Revenue for FY '24 was $3.6 billion, a 4% increase ($138 million) driven by higher net average charge and company-owned volumes in the Assisted category, and greater online paid returns in DIY, partially offset by lower Emerald Card activity [18] - Total operating expenses increased by 3% ($82 million) to $2.8 billion, primarily due to higher labor costs and bad debt expense, partially offset by lower consulting and outsourced services [19] - Pretax income increased by 7% ($51 million) to $762 million, with an effective tax rate of 21.6% compared to 21% in the prior year [19] - EBITDA grew by 5% to $963 million, outpacing revenue growth [20] - Earnings per share (EPS) from continuing operations increased by 16% to $4.14, while adjusted EPS increased by 15% to $4.41 [20] - Free cash flow for FY '24 was over $650 million, driven by depreciation and amortization exceeding CapEx [27] Business Line Performance - DIY business saw strong revenue growth of 11%, driven by paid client growth and NAC (Net Average Charge) increases, with AI Tax Assist contributing to higher new client conversion [5][10] - Assisted business grew NAC and attracted higher-value clients, with positive trends in small business tax services [6] - Small Business segment delivered mid-single-digit revenue growth, with NAC up 3% and double-digit growth in bookkeeping and payroll [7] - Wave revenue grew 7%, driven by the launch of Pro-Tier and paid receipt products, with expectations for continued positive trends in FY '25 [8] - Spruce, the mobile banking platform, reached 476,000 sign-ups and nearly $1 billion in customer deposits, with 50% of deposits coming from non-tax sources [9] Market Performance - The company expects industry growth of 1% in FY '25, with DIY growing slightly faster than Assisted, consistent with long-term trends [38] - The company aims to maintain overall market share, with a focus on improving Assisted channel performance to stabilize share [39][40] Strategy and Competitive Landscape - The company continues to execute its Block Horizons strategy, focusing on Small Business, Wave, and Financial Products, with significant progress in all three areas [7][8][9] - The company is investing in AI-driven tools like AI Tax Assist and gen-AI use cases to drive future efficiencies and cost savings [10] - The company is focused on improving the client experience in the Assisted channel, particularly for new clients, to enhance conversion rates [26][41] Management Commentary on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - The company expects FY '25 revenue to be in the range of $3.69 billion to $3.75 billion, EBITDA between $975 million and $1.02 billion, and EPS between $5.15 and $5.35, benefiting from a lower effective tax rate of approximately 13% [22][23] - The company anticipates ongoing revenue growth drivers in Wave and Small Business, with continued opportunistic repurchases of franchise locations [22] - Management remains confident in the company's ability to leverage its cost structure to grow EBITDA faster than revenue and EPS faster than EBITDA [23] Other Key Information - The company announced a 17% increase in its quarterly dividend to $37.5 per share and a new $1.5 billion share repurchase authorization, continuing its strong capital allocation practices [6][21] - Tony Bowen, CFO, is retiring after 20 years with the company, and Tiffany Mason will succeed him as CFO starting September 13th [13][16] - Scott Manuel joined as Chief Strategy and Operations Officer, focusing on long-term enterprise strategy and execution [17] Q&A Session Summary Question: How does the company plan to maintain market share in the Assisted channel for FY '25? - The company is focusing on improving the client experience, particularly for new clients, by better managing expectations and enhancing the value proposition [26][41] Question: What are the expectations for free cash flow in FY '25? - Free cash flow is expected to remain strong, with depreciation and amortization continuing to exceed CapEx, maintaining a run rate of over $650 million [27] Question: How does the company view the impact of the upcoming election on the tax season? - The company does not expect the election to directly impact the tax filing season, but potential policy changes post-election could influence consumer behavior [30][31] Question: What are the levers for sustaining DIY market share growth? - The company is focused on delivering a competitive product, aggressive marketing against competitors like TurboTax, and continuous product improvements [33][34] Question: What is the outlook for margin expansion in FY '25 and beyond? - The company expects EBITDA to continue growing faster than revenue, leveraging cost structure improvements and productivity gains, with ongoing margin expansion [36][37] Question: What are the expectations for Assisted and DIY growth in FY '25? - DIY is expected to grow slightly faster than Assisted, consistent with long-term industry trends, with overall industry growth projected at 1% [38] Question: How will share repurchases impact FY '25 EPS? - The company expects to continue its share repurchase program opportunistically, contributing to EPS growth, with most repurchases typically occurring in the first half of the fiscal year [46][47] Question: What is the impact of the California extension on FY '24 revenue and FY '25 expectations? - The California extension contributed approximately 1 point to industry volume and 0.75 points to revenue in FY '24, with no significant impact expected in FY '25 [52] Question: When will the tax benefit impact EPS in FY '25? - The tax benefit is expected to impact EPS in a particular quarter, likely Q2 or later, once audit matters are resolved [50][51]

H&R Block (HRB) reported $1.06 billion in revenue for the quarter ended June 2024, representing a year-overyear increase of 3%. EPS of $1.89 for the same period compares to $2.05 a year ago. The reported revenue compares to the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.04 billion, representing a surprise of +2.58%. The company delivered an EPS surprise of +10.53%, with the consensus EPS estimate being $1.71. While investors scrutinize revenue and earnings changes year-over-year and how they compare with Wall Street ex ...

H&R Block, Inc. (HRB) is scheduled to report its fourth-quarter fiscal 2024 results on Aug 15, after market close. The company has an impressive earnings surprise history, having surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in the past four quarters, the surprise being 10.3%, on average. H&R Block, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise H&R Block, Inc. price-eps-surprise | H&R Block, Inc. Quote Q4 Expectations The Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenues is pegged at $1 billion, indicating a marginal increase from the year-ago ...

The Consumer Discretionary group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Is H&R Block (HRB) one of those stocks right now? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Consumer Discretionary sector should help us answer this question. H&R Block is one of 280 companies in the Consumer Discretionary group. The Consumer Discretionary group currently sits at #10 within the Zacks Sector Rank. ...

KANSAS CITY, Mo., Aug. 01, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB) will report fourth quarter and fiscal 2024 full year results on Thursday, August 15, 2024, after the New York Stock Exchange market close. At that time, a copy of the press release and presentation will be available on the company's investor relations website at https://investors.hrblock.com/. A conference call for analysts, institutional investors, and shareholders will be held at 4:30 p.m. Eastern time on Thursday, August 15, 2 ...

The drop pushed the Nasdaq deeper below its 50-day moving average heading into the Fed's rate decision and Jay Powell's speech on Wednesday. Wall Street is also waiting nervously on earnings reports from Meta, Apple, Amazon, and other big tech stocks this week. · Current Price/52-week High >= 0.8 Disclosure: Performance information for Zacks' portfolios and strategies are available at: www.zacks.com/performance_disclosure Today we explore a screen that helps investors find stocks experiencing impressive upw ...

Of these, value investing is easily one of the most popular ways to find great stocks in any market environment. Value investors rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued, leaving room for profits. One stock to keep an eye on is H&R Block (HRB) . HRB is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy), as well as an A grade for Value. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 11.85, which compares to its industry's average of 12.77. Over ...

What's Driving the Outperformance? For the current fiscal year, H&R Block is expected to post earnings of $4.76 per share on $3.58 billion in revenues. Meanwhile, for the next fiscal year, the company is expected to earn $4.86 per share on $3.68 billion in revenues. This represents a year-over-year change of 10.88% and 2.66%, respectively. H&R Block may be at a 52-week high right now, but what might the future hold for the stock? A key aspect of this question is taking a look at valuation metrics in order t ...