Beazer Homes USA (NYSE:BZH) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume on Strong Earnings

Beazer Homes USA, Inc. (NYSE:BZH) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. Approximately 3,024,715 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 466% from the previous session’s volume of 534,011 shares.The stock last traded at $33.0370 and had previously closed at $33.46.

The construction company reported ($0.16) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.34) by $0.18. Beazer Homes USA had a negative net margin of 0.18% and a positive return on equity of 0.99%. The company had revenue of $516.31 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $510.55 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.26 earnings per share. Beazer Homes USA’s quarterly revenue was down 5.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BZH. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Beazer Homes USA from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 10th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Beazer Homes USA from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Beazer Homes USA currently has an average rating of “Reduce”.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Beazer Homes USA

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Beazer Homes USA by 93.9% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,883 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 912 shares in the last quarter. Comerica Bank bought a new position in Beazer Homes USA in the third quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its stake in Beazer Homes USA by 454.9% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 2,103 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 1,724 shares during the last quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Beazer Homes USA in the third quarter valued at approximately $70,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in Beazer Homes USA by 123.4% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,500 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $78,000 after purchasing an additional 1,933 shares in the last quarter. 85.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Beazer Homes USA Trading Down 1.3%

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $29.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $25.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 15.67 and a quick ratio of 1.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $903.09 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -220.26 and a beta of 2.17.

About Beazer Homes USA

Beazer Homes USA, Inc is a national homebuilder specializing in the design, construction and sale of single-family homes. The company serves a diverse range of buyers, offering product lines that span from entry-level homes to move-up and active adult communities. In addition to its core homebuilding operations, Beazer provides mortgage financing, title and closing services through its subsidiaries, aiming to simplify the home-buying process and manage risk across the transaction.

Operating in key growth markets across the United States, Beazer Homes maintains a presence in more than a dozen metropolitan areas, including select markets in the Southeast, Southwest and West.