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H&R Block (HRB) Rises 56% in a Year: What You Should Know

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H&R Block, Inc. (HRB - Free Report) has had an impressive run over the past year. The stock has appreciated a whopping 56%, significantly outperforming the 29% rally of the industry it belongs to and the 17% growth of the Zacks S&P 500 composite.

What’s Behind the Rally

HRB has recorded better-than-expected earnings and revenue performance in the past four quarters, driven by improvements in net average charge in both Assisted and DIY, DIY volume growth and disciplined cost management.

We believe that the main drivers of the company’s post-pandemic performance are digital enablement of its business, client addition and retention in both Assisted and DIY, greater usage of AI, and machine learning for product improvement and expansion in small businesses.

H&R Block has a five-year strategy called Block Horizons in place, which is expected to help the company deliver sustainable revenues and operating profit growth, improve return on investments and maintain strong balance sheet and liquidity positions.

Commitment to shareholder returns makes H&R Block a reliable way for investors to compound wealth over the long term. The company paid $177.9 million, $186.5 million and $195.1 million in dividends in fiscal 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively. It repurchased shares worth $550.2 million, $563.2 million and $191.3 million, respectively, in fiscal 2023, 2022 and 2021.

Zacks Rank and Stocks to Consider

HRB currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

A couple of better-ranked stocks are Booz Allen Hamilton (BAH - Free Report) and SPX Technologies, Inc. (SPXC - Free Report) .

Booz Allen Hamilton has a Zacks Rank of 2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

BAH has a long-term earnings growth expectation of 14%. It delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 12.5%, on average.

SPX Technologies, Inc. currently flaunts a Zacks Rank of 1. It has a long-term earnings growth expectation of 18%. SPXC delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 13.9%, on average.

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