US Bancorp DE Lowers Position in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH)

US Bancorp DE cut its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) by 18.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 5,781 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 1,281 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE’s holdings in Meritage Homes were worth $889,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 65.7% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 17,259 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,539,000 after buying an additional 6,843 shares in the last quarter. Lisanti Capital Growth LLC purchased a new position in Meritage Homes in the third quarter valued at about $6,973,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in 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 in the last quarter. Phocas Financial Corp. purchased a new stake in shares of Meritage Homes during the third quarter valued at about $3,883,000. Finally, L & S Advisors Inc purchased a new position in Meritage Homes in the third quarter worth $1,338,000. Institutional investors own 98.44% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Meritage Homes from $117.50 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Meritage Homes from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Meritage Homes from $126.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated 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. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $103.00 price target on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $106.25.

Insider Transactions at Meritage Homes

In related news, CAO Alison Sasser sold 676 shares of Meritage Homes stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total value of $48,692.28. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $427,353.99. The trade was a 10.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Clinton Szubinski sold 595 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.29, for a total value of $43,607.55. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 30,547 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,238,789.63. The trade was a 1.91 % 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 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Meritage Homes Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MTH opened at $77.68 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $79.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $88.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 1.61. Meritage Homes Co. has a 1 year low of $69.26 and a 1 year high of $106.99. The company has a market capitalization of $5.57 billion, a PE ratio of 5.94 and a beta of 1.92.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $4.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.55 by $0.17. Meritage Homes had a return on equity of 15.90% and a net margin of 12.29%. On average, research analysts predict that Meritage Homes Co. will post 9.44 earnings per share 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 issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.21%. This is an increase from Meritage Homes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Meritage Homes’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.16%.

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.