Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) Upgraded to “Buy” by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Friday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Meritage Homes from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of Meritage Homes from a neutral rating to an outperform rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Wedbush reiterated an underperform rating and set a $148.00 price objective on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Thursday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Meritage Homes from $151.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $172.67.

Meritage Homes Stock Performance

MTH opened at $169.48 on Friday. Meritage Homes has a 12-month low of $109.23 and a 12-month high of $179.68. The company has a market cap of $6.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.90 and a beta of 1.77. The company’s 50 day moving average is $159.56 and its 200 day moving average is $152.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $5.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.54 by $1.52. Meritage Homes had a net margin of 12.54% and a return on equity of 17.63%. The company had revenue of $1.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.28 billion. On average, equities research analysts predict that Meritage Homes will post 19.95 EPS for the current year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.77%. This is a boost from Meritage Homes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. Meritage Homes’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Alison Sasser sold 355 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.61, for a total value of $54,176.55. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 869 shares in the company, valued at $132,618.09. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO Phillippe Lord sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.79, for a total value of $406,975.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 100,266 shares in the company, valued at $16,322,302.14. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Alison Sasser sold 355 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.61, for a total transaction of $54,176.55. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 869 shares in the company, valued at approximately $132,618.09. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 3,998 shares of company stock worth $635,171. Insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meritage Homes

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Evergreen Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Meritage Homes by 3.3% during the third quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 2,380 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $291,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Meritage Homes by 16.8% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 676 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $119,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its stake in Meritage Homes by 91.6% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 205 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. boosted its stake in Meritage Homes by 6.2% during the third quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 1,979 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $242,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the period. Finally, Advisor Partners II LLC boosted its stake in Meritage Homes by 5.2% during the third quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC now owns 2,438 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $298,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.44% of the company’s stock.

About Meritage Homes

Meritage Homes Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, designs and builds single-family attached and detached homes in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Homebuilding and Financial Services. It acquires and develops land; and constructs, markets, and sells homes for entry-level and first move-up buyers in Arizona, California, Colorado, Utah, Texas, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.