Steinberg Asset Management LLC Purchases New Position in Lennar Corporation $LEN

Steinberg Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN) in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 23,356 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,906,000. Lennar comprises 1.2% of Steinberg Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Polaris Financial Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Lennar during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Phillip James Consulting Co. acquired a new position in shares of Lennar in the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Global Assets Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Lennar during the first quarter worth $39,000. GK Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Lennar during the third quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC grew its position in Lennar by 1,276.4% during the second quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 757 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 702 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.10% of the company’s stock.

Lennar Stock Performance

NYSE:LEN opened at $86.95 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 4.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.69 billion, a PE ratio of 16.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 1.36. Lennar Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $71.78 and a fifty-two week high of $133.76. The company has a fifty day moving average of $81.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $91.59.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, September 16th. The construction company reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.29 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $8.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.32 billion. Lennar had a net margin of 4.09% and a return on equity of 6.15%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.00 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Lennar Corporation will post 4.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lennar Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 7th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 7th. Lennar’s payout ratio is presently 37.81%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Lennar from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Lennar from $79.00 to $70.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 18th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Lennar in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. They set an “underweight” rating and a $65.00 target price on the stock. Citizens Jmp restated a “hold” rating on shares of Lennar in a research note on Thursday, September 17th. Finally, BTIG Research reaffirmed a “sell” rating and issued a $63.00 price target on shares of Lennar in a report on Friday, September 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and eleven have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Strong Sell” and a consensus target price of $79.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired 1,708,095 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 2nd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $79.44 per share, for a total transaction of $135,691,066.80. Following the purchase, the insider owned 28,438,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,259,118,294.80. This represents a 6.39% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In the last ninety days, insiders purchased 7,502,276 shares of company stock worth $595,303,287. 10.05% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Lennar Company Profile

Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN) is a homebuilding and real estate company that develops, constructs, and sells primarily single-family homes. The company offers homes across a range of price points and designs, including residences for first-time, move-up, luxury, and active-adult buyers. Its operations also include land acquisition and development, allowing Lennar to prepare communities and lots for residential construction.

In addition to homebuilding, Lennar develops multifamily rental properties and provides related financial services.