It has been about a month since the last earnings report for H&R Block (HRB Quick QuoteHRB - Free Report) . Shares have added about 7.9% in that time frame, outperforming the S&P 500.

Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is H&R Block due for a pullback? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers.

H&R Block Beats on Q1 Estimates

H&R Block, Inc. reported impressive first-quarter fiscal 2024 results, wherein both earnings and revenues surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate.

Quarterly adjusted loss per share came in at $1.05 against the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of $1.13 per share. Earnings declined 6.1% on a year-over-year basis.

Revenues of $183.8 million exceeded the consensus estimate by 1.9% and increased 2.1% year over year. The top line was positively impacted by a higher net average charge in the Assisted category.

Other Quarterly Numbers

Revenues from U.S. tax preparation and related services came in at $90.4 million, increasing 4.7% from the year-ago figure. Revenues from Financial services came in at $8.9 million, 27% lower than the year-ago figure.

Loss before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization came in at $166.3 million against a loss of $171.9 million in the year-ago quarter.

H&R Block exited the quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $427 million compared with $987 million at the end of the prior quarter. Long-term debt was $1.5 billion, in line with the previous quarter.

The company generated $335 million of cash from operating activities while capex was $13 million.

2024 Outlook

H&R Block expects revenues in the range of $3.530-$3.585 billion. 

Adjusted EPS is projected to be between $4.1 and $4.3.

EBITDA is anticipated to be between $930 million and $965 million. The effective tax rate is expected to be around 23%.

How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?

In the past month, investors have witnessed a downward trend in estimates revision.

VGM Scores

At this time, H&R Block has a nice Growth Score of B, however its Momentum Score is doing a bit better with an A. Charting a somewhat similar path, the stock was allocated a grade of B on the value side, putting it in the top 40% for this investment strategy.

Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of A. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.

Outlook

Estimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions indicates a downward shift. Notably, H&R Block has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.

Performance of an Industry Player

H&R Block belongs to the Zacks Consumer Services - Miscellaneous industry. Another stock from the same industry, Cimpress (CMPR Quick QuoteCMPR - Free Report) , has gained 17.7% over the past month. More than a month has passed since the company reported results for the quarter ended September 2023.

Cimpress reported revenues of $757.29 million in the last reported quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +7.7%. EPS of $0.17 for the same period compares with -$0.97 a year ago.

Cimpress is expected to post earnings of $1.26 per share for the current quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +373.9%. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate has changed -3.3%.

The overall direction and magnitude of estimate revisions translate into a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) for Cimpress. Also, the stock has a VGM Score of A.