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Block (SQ) Misses Q4 EPS by 15c, Revenue Misses

February 20, 2025 4:14 PM

Block (NYSE: SQ) reported Q4 EPS of $0.71, $0.15 worse than the analyst estimate of $0.86. Revenue for the quarter came in at $6.03 billion versus the consensus estimate of $6.24 billion.

Guidance:

For 2025, we expect at least 15% gross profit growth year over year, consistent with the initial outlook we shared in our third quarter shareholder letter, and despite an additional 50 basis points of FX headwinds since that initial outlook was provided. We expect to deliver Adjusted Operating Income of $2.1 billion, equating to a margin of approximately 21% on gross profit, which implies an initial expectation of Rule of 35.5 in 2025. Our 2025 guidance delivers margin expansion of approximately 240 basis points even as we plan to increase investment in go-to-market initiatives across Square and Cash App by more than 20% this year. In Square, were building on 2024 investments in marketing, sales, and partnerships, where early marketing efforts have demonstrated strong returns on investment. Increased spend will help us leverage recent product investments to reach more sellers. In Cash App, were investing in brand awareness, incentives, and lifecycle marketing to drive paycheck deposit and new product adoption. We see a significant opportunity to enhance awareness of Cash Apps breadth and capabilities as a financial services platform, reinforcing paycheck deposit growth throughout 2025 and beyond. We anticipate gross profit growth will accelerate throughout the year, with clear visibility into the key drivers. In Square, expanded go-to-market initiatives in the second half of 2024 combined with investments in product development and account management, are expected to drive new customer acquisition and improved retention. We expect this to drive an improvement in both GPV and gross profit growth. We expect a more pronounced gross profit acceleration for Cash App, driven by the February launch of Afterpay on Cash App Card, our planned expansion of Cash Borrow eligibility, and ramping marketing investments to support the growth of Cash App Card and paycheck deposit actives. In 2025, we expect a non-GAAP effective tax rate in the mid-20% range, consistent with 2024. In the first quarter of 2025, we will begin burdening our Adjusted Net Income with stock-based compensation, consistent with Adjusted Operating Income, to better reflect how we operate the business.

For earnings history and earnings-related data on Block (SQ) click here.

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