KB Home (NYSE:KBH) Shares Gap Down on Disappointing Earnings

KB Home (NYSE:KBH)’s share price gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $61.79, but opened at $56.59. KB Home shares last traded at $57.88, with a volume of 1,193,732 shares trading hands.

The construction company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.56 by ($0.07). KB Home had a return on equity of 16.46% and a net margin of 9.45%. The company had revenue of $1.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.51 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.76 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 5.2% on a year-over-year basis.

KB Home Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 6th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 6th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.71%. KB Home’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.81%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on KBH shares. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on KB Home from $81.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $75.00 target price on shares of KB Home in a report on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of KB Home from $85.00 to $76.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of KB Home from $82.00 to $74.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on KB Home from $67.00 to $63.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $72.13.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Jeff Kaminski sold 27,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.77, for a total value of $1,891,175.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,473 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,370,708.21. This trade represents a 44.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 3.89% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On KB Home

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in KB Home by 65.6% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 540 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of KB Home by 43.6% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 590 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in KB Home during the 3rd quarter worth $59,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in KB Home by 275.7% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 759 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 557 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi boosted its stake in shares of KB Home by 29.6% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 880 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. 96.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

KB Home Stock Performance

The stock’s 50 day moving average is $63.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $72.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.91, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 5.51 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

KB Home Company Profile

KB Home operates as a homebuilding company in the United States. It operates through four segments: West Coast, Southwest, Central, and Southeast. It builds and sells various homes, including attached and detached single-family residential homes, townhomes, and condominiums primarily for first-time, first move-up, second move-up, and active adult homebuyers.