Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) Shares Sold by TCW Group Inc.

TCW Group Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) by 5.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 554,166 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 33,106 shares during the period. TCW Group Inc. owned approximately 0.20% of Lennar worth $82,593,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LEN. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lennar during the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Lennar in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Lennar in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Lennar during the 3rd quarter valued at about $56,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. increased its position in Lennar by 34.3% during the third quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 497 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. 81.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Lennar in a research report on Friday, March 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Lennar from $161.00 to $157.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 18th. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $170.00 price target on shares of Lennar in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Citigroup increased their target price on Lennar from $179.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Wedbush reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $144.00 price target on shares of Lennar in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $163.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lennar

In other news, EVP Jeffrey Joseph Mccall sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.70, for a total transaction of $1,627,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 128,629 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,927,938.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Lennar news, Director Amy Banse bought 1,575 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 10th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $157.00 per share, with a total value of $247,275.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,859 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,861,863. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Jeffrey Joseph Mccall sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.70, for a total transaction of $1,627,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 128,629 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,927,938.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 9.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Lennar Price Performance

Shares of LEN traded down $1.36 on Thursday, reaching $154.52. The stock had a trading volume of 1,658,437 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,989,284. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 5.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.01 billion, a PE ratio of 10.84, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.55. Lennar Co. has a twelve month low of $102.90 and a twelve month high of $172.59. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $160.31 and a 200 day moving average of $150.64.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 14th. The construction company reported $2.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.36. Lennar had a net margin of 11.59% and a return on equity of 15.90%. The firm had revenue of $7.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.39 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.12 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Lennar Co. will post 14.46 EPS for the current year.

Lennar Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 24th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 23rd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.29%. Lennar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.02%.

About Lennar

Lennar Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a homebuilder primarily under the Lennar brand in the United States. It operates through Homebuilding East, Homebuilding Central, Homebuilding Texas, Homebuilding West, Financial Services, Multifamily, and Lennar Other segments. The company's homebuilding operations include the construction and sale of single-family attached and detached homes, as well as the purchase, development, and sale of residential land; and development, construction, and management of multifamily rental properties.