Insider Buying: Lennar (NYSE:LEN) Major Shareholder Buys $1,015,030.77 in Stock

Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN) major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired 12,389 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 29th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $81.93 per share, with a total value of $1,015,030.77. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 25,395,623 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,080,663,392.39. This trade represents a 0.05% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Major shareholders that own 10% or more of a company’s shares are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

Berkshire Hathaway Inc also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, September 30th, Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought 642,821 shares of Lennar stock. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $81.58 per share, for a total transaction of $52,441,337.18.
• On Monday, September 28th, Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased 5,200 shares of Lennar stock. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $81.96 per share, with a total value of $426,192.00.
• On Friday, September 25th, Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased 492,124 shares of Lennar stock. The shares were purchased at an average price of $81.12 per share, with a total value of $39,921,098.88.
• On Thursday, September 24th, Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased 653,320 shares of Lennar stock. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $80.88 per share, for a total transaction of $52,840,521.60.
• On Wednesday, September 23rd, Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired 534,256 shares of Lennar stock. The stock was acquired at an average price of $81.65 per share, with a total value of $43,622,002.40.
• On Monday, September 21st, Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought 667,118 shares of Lennar stock. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $77.74 per share, with a total value of $51,861,753.32.
• On Friday, September 18th, Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased 1,381,397 shares of Lennar stock. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $76.48 per share, for a total transaction of $105,649,242.56.
• On Thursday, September 17th, Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased 695,014 shares of Lennar stock. The shares were acquired at an average price of $78.98 per share, with a total value of $54,892,205.72.

Lennar Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of NYSE:LEN traded down $1.34 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $81.67. 5,383,356 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,783,887. The stock has a market cap of $19.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.39. Lennar Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $75.70 and a fifty-two week high of $133.76. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $83.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $87.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 4.94 and a quick ratio of 0.69.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, September 16th. The construction company reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by ($0.06). Lennar had a net margin of 4.09% and a return on equity of 6.15%. The company had revenue of $8.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.32 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.29 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Lennar Corporation will post 4.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 7th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 7th. Lennar’s payout ratio is currently 37.81%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Lennar from $85.00 to $75.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Lennar in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Lennar in a research report on Thursday, September 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Lennar in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Evercore boosted their target price on Lennar from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and nine have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $81.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LEN. Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lennar by 1,276.4% in the 2nd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 757 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 702 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Lennar by 5.3% during the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 14,609 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,322,000 after purchasing an additional 735 shares in the last quarter. Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Lennar in the second quarter valued at $317,000. Cidel Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Lennar by 15.6% in the second quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,873 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $441,000 after buying an additional 657 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in Lennar in the second quarter valued at $232,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.10% of the company’s stock.

Lennar Company Profile

Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN) is a homebuilding company that designs, constructs and sells single-family homes and, through its multifamily operations, develops apartment communities. Its residential offerings generally include homes across a range of sizes and prices, serving first-time, move-up and active-adult buyers.

The company also provides related services through businesses involved in mortgage financing, title and closing services, insurance and other real estate activities. Lennar develops residential communities and manages land acquisition, planning and construction as part of its integrated homebuilding model.

Founded in 1954, Lennar has expanded from its origins in South Florida into a national homebuilder serving numerous markets across the United States.