Fisher Asset Management LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH)

Fisher Asset Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) by 26.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 782,320 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 277,939 shares during the quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC owned 2.16% of Meritage Homes worth $136,280,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MTH. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its position in Meritage Homes by 91.6% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 205 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 157.6% during the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 237 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Meritage Homes in the 4th quarter worth approximately $52,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new stake in Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter worth approximately $96,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.44% of the company’s stock.

Meritage Homes Price Performance

Shares of MTH traded down $4.12 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $162.74. 401,412 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 386,180. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $169.61 and a 200-day moving average of $165.01. Meritage Homes Co. has a 52 week low of $109.23 and a 52 week high of $189.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66. The stock has a market cap of $5.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.59 and a beta of 1.78.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $5.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.54 by $1.52. Meritage Homes had a net margin of 12.54% and a return on equity of 17.63%. The business had revenue of $1.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.28 billion. On average, analysts forecast that Meritage Homes Co. will post 20.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meritage Homes Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.84%. Meritage Homes’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on MTH. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Meritage Homes from $180.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. StockNews.com upgraded Meritage Homes from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Zelman & Associates upgraded Meritage Homes from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Wedbush reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $148.00 target price on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Tuesday, May 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $178.25.

Meritage Homes Company Profile

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.