Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) Reaches New 1-Year Low – What’s Next?

Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) shares hit a new 52-week low on Thursday . The company traded as low as $69.14 and last traded at $69.01, with a volume of 483299 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $72.16.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MTH has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $103.00 target price on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Meritage Homes from $117.50 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $98.50 target price (down from $110.00) on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Meritage Homes from $97.00 to $90.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Meritage Homes from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $106.25.

Meritage Homes Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $4.97 billion, a PE ratio of 5.29 and a beta of 1.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $77.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $88.38.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $4.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.55 by $0.17. Meritage Homes had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 15.90%. As a group, research analysts predict that Meritage Homes Co. will post 9.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This is a positive change from Meritage Homes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Meritage Homes’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.16%.

Insider Transactions at Meritage Homes

In related news, Chairman Steven J. Hilton bought 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $74.51 per share, for a total transaction of $819,610.00. Following the purchase, the chairman now directly owns 811,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $60,441,915.92. This trade represents a 1.37 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Alison Sasser sold 676 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total transaction of $48,692.28. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,933 shares in the company, valued at $427,353.99. The trade was a 10.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,683 shares of company stock valued at $122,547 in the last quarter. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Meritage Homes

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MTH. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its stake in shares of Meritage Homes by 264.0% in the third quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 11,259 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,309,000 after purchasing an additional 8,166 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. raised its position in Meritage Homes by 53.6% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 172 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc lifted its stake in Meritage Homes by 60.6% during the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 2,462 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $505,000 after acquiring an additional 929 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in Meritage Homes by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 2,867 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $588,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes by 18.7% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 986 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $202,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.44% of the company’s stock.

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.