Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Raises Stake in Lennar Corporation $LEN

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd increased its holdings in Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN) by 142.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,261 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 17,768 shares during the quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd’s holdings in Lennar were worth $3,814,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lennar during the second quarter worth $33,000. Rexford Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Lennar during the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Lennar during the 2nd quarter valued at about $43,000. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lennar in the 2nd quarter valued at about $47,000. Finally, Harbor Investment Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lennar by 39.7% in the third quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 405 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. 81.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lennar Stock Down 2.4%

LEN stock opened at $111.94 on Monday. Lennar Corporation has a 52 week low of $98.42 and a 52 week high of $144.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 4.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $116.24 and a 200-day simple moving average of $121.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.42.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 16th. The construction company reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.30 by ($0.27). Lennar had a return on equity of 9.27% and a net margin of 6.08%.The firm had revenue of $9.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.03 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Lennar Corporation will post 12.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 4th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 4th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. Lennar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on LEN. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Lennar from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Lennar from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Argus upgraded shares of Lennar to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Lennar from $98.00 to $88.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $95.00 price objective (down previously from $125.00) on shares of Lennar in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and eight have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $106.38.

About Lennar

Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN) is a U.S.-based homebuilder and real estate company that designs, constructs and sells residential housing. The company offers a range of product types including single-family detached homes, townhomes and condominiums, serving buyers from entry-level and first-time purchasers to move-up, active-adult and luxury segments. Lennar also develops master-planned communities and manages land acquisition and entitlement activities that support its homebuilding operations.

In addition to home construction and sales, Lennar provides a suite of ancillary services intended to streamline the purchase process and capture additional value.