Vanguard Group Inc. Grows Stake in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH)

Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,074,741 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 26,889 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 5.63% of Meritage Homes worth $626,777,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MTH. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,773,609 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $363,714,000 after purchasing an additional 74,422 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Meritage Homes by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 405,854 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $62,429,000 after acquiring an additional 3,219 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in Meritage Homes by 75.1% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 347,227 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $71,206,000 after purchasing an additional 148,898 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Meritage Homes by 2,199.9% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 305,605 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $47,008,000 after purchasing an additional 292,317 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its stake in Meritage Homes by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 286,105 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $44,009,000 after purchasing an additional 13,983 shares during the last quarter. 98.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Meritage Homes Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MTH opened at $70.36 on Monday. Meritage Homes Co. has a twelve month low of $68.93 and a twelve month high of $106.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company has a market cap of $5.05 billion, a PE ratio of 5.38 and a beta of 1.92. The company’s 50 day moving average is $74.89 and its 200 day moving average is $86.14.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $4.72 earnings per share 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%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Meritage Homes Co. will post 9.44 EPS for the current year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.44%. This is a positive change from Meritage Homes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Meritage Homes’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.16%.

Insider Transactions at Meritage Homes

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on MTH. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Meritage Homes from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $98.50 price target (down from $110.00) on shares of Meritage Homes in a report on Friday, December 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Meritage Homes from $97.00 to $90.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of Meritage Homes from $117.50 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Meritage Homes from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, March 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $106.25.

Meritage Homes 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.