Phillippe Lord Sells 32,820 Shares of Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) Stock

Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE:MTH) CEO Phillippe Lord sold 32,820 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.49, for a total value of $2,510,401.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 260,389 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,917,154.61. The trade was a 11.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Meritage Homes Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:MTH opened at $75.47 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $72.81 and a 200 day moving average of $72.58. The company has a market cap of $5.04 billion, a PE ratio of 11.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a current ratio of 2.10, a quick ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Meritage Homes Corporation has a 12-month low of $59.27 and a 12-month high of $84.74.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The construction company reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.55 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.51 billion. Meritage Homes had a net margin of 7.73% and a return on equity of 9.28%. The firm’s revenue was down 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $4.72 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Meritage Homes Corporation will post 9.44 EPS for the current year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. This is an increase from Meritage Homes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. Meritage Homes’s payout ratio is currently 27.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MTH has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut Meritage Homes from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 11th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $82.00 price objective (up from $75.00) on shares of Meritage Homes in a report on Friday, January 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Meritage Homes from $60.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Meritage Homes from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meritage Homes presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.63.

Trending Headlines about Meritage Homes

Here are the key news stories impacting Meritage Homes this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Meritage raised its quarterly dividend to $0.48 (annualized $1.92, ~2.6% yield) with an ex-dividend date of March 17 and pay date March 31 — signals confidence in cash flow and boosts the stock’s income appeal. Dividend Announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Q4 EPS beat: Meritage reported $1.67 EPS vs. $1.55 consensus, which supports valuation and investor sentiment despite a revenue decline (~11.9% YoY to $1.44B) that investors should monitor. Earnings Release
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst coverage remains mixed but constructive in places (some buy/outperform ratings and raised price targets), providing support for upside expectations. Analyst Notes
• Neutral Sentiment: Unrelated ticker overlap: a miner using the symbol “MTH” on ASX/TSXV (Mithril) produced a press release — may cause occasional headline confusion but has no business impact on Meritage. Ticker Confusion
• Neutral Sentiment: Institutional ownership remains very high (~98%) with modest quarter-to-quarter stake changes; large institutional positions can both stabilize shares and amplify moves when funds trade. Institutional Holdings
• Negative Sentiment: Significant insider selling: CEO Phillippe Lord sold 32,820 shares (~$2.51M), CFO Hilla Sferruzza sold 10,928 shares (~$834k), and EVP Javier Feliciano sold 3,580 shares (~$273k). Large senior-level sales may create short-term selling pressure or raise questions for some investors. CEO Form 4 CFO Form 4 EVP Form 4
• Negative Sentiment: Additional smaller insider sales (EVP Austin Woffinden and CAO Alison Sasser) were filed and add to the cluster of selling, though individually immaterial. Woffinden Form 4 Sasser Form 4

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Meritage Homes

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Alps Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Meritage Homes during the third quarter valued at approximately $4,731,000. Lodge Hill Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Meritage Homes during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $21,729,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes by 13.1% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 402,664 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $29,165,000 after purchasing an additional 46,554 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes by 90.1% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 119,754 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $8,804,000 after purchasing an additional 56,746 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Meritage Homes in the 3rd quarter valued at $37,477,000. 98.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Meritage Homes

Meritage Homes Corporation is a national homebuilder and residential developer headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona. Founded in 1985 as Winchester Homes and later rebranded to Meritage Homes, the company specializes in designing, constructing and selling single‐family detached and attached homes. With a focus on energy efficiency and sustainable building practices, Meritage Homes markets its properties under the GreenSmart program, which integrates high‐performance features aimed at reducing long‐term energy and water consumption for homebuyers.

The company’s core activities encompass land acquisition, residential community planning, home design, construction management and real estate sales.