XYZ’s Latest Target Hike From Barclays Implies Over 20% Upside Potential – What CEO Jack Dorsey Said In Shareholder Letter

Block CEO Jack Dorsey said in a shareholder letter that stablecoins and Bitcoin still remain key to the growth of CashApp.

• Barclays’ price target implies a 20% upside potential for Block shares from its Wednesday close.
• The company's adjusted earnings of $1.13 per share more than doubled from a year earlier.
• Gross profit from Block's Bitcoin business fell by half after the company cut fees on some of Cash App’s Bitcoin transactions, CEO Dorsey said.

Block Inc. (XYZ) shares were in the spotlight on Thursday after Barclays raised its price target on the payments company, even as its latest results showed that Bitcoin (BTC) profit fell by half.

Barclays lifted its price target on Block to $105 from $100 and kept an 'Overweight' rating on the stock, according to TheFly. The company had “another beat-and-raise” quarter, said Barclays, adding that both of Block’s businesses, Square and Cash App, showed strong growth.

Barclays’ price target implies about 20.7% upside from Block’s Wednesday close of $87.

Block Beats Q3 Estimates, Raises 2026 Earnings Outlook

Block released its third-quarter results on Wednesday, with quarterly earnings of $1.13 per share, more than double the year-ago figure. The EPS was about 10% above the analyst estimate of $1.03. 

The company's revenue also rose about 10% from a year earlier to $6.72 billion, surpassing the $6.6 billion estimate of analysts, according to Koyfin data. The company's gross profit grew 22% to $3.24 billion.

Block also raised its full-year outlook, now expecting adjusted earnings of $4.15 per share for 2026.

XYZ’s price was down 0.1% in premarket trade. On Stocktwits, the retail sentiment around XYZ remained in the ‘extremely bullish’ zone, while chatter around it stayed at ‘extremely high’ levels over the past day. 

Bitcoin Profit Falls Sharply

Bitcoin was the weakest area in the quarter. Block's Bitcoin business gross profit fell to $52 million from last year's $104 million, according to the shareholder letter. The company said the fall was primarily due to a strategic decision to reduce the fee we charge “on certain Bitcoin transactions on Cash App."

Chief Executive Jack Dorsey said that cryptocurrency remained at the center of Cash App's goals. In his letter to shareholders, Dorsey wrote, "We're using Bitcoin and stablecoins as an enabler of Cash App's expansion."

The shares jumped over 15% on Wednesday after the report, the stock's biggest one-day gain in eight months.

In addition, Scotiabank analyst Lance Jessurun boosted the firm's price target on XYZ stock to $89 from $82 on Wednesday, while keeping a 'Sector Perform' rating on the shares. The firm noted that the company's third quarter results beat estimates across ‘every guided metric' and that it will get constructive on a pullback.

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