Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) Shares Gap Up Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $154.69, but opened at $165.31. Meritage Homes shares last traded at $161.82, with a volume of 157,788 shares.

The construction company reported $5.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.54 by $1.52. The firm had revenue of $1.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.28 billion. Meritage Homes had a return on equity of 17.03% and a net margin of 12.03%.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This is a positive change from Meritage Homes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.85%. Meritage Homes’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on MTH shares. Seaport Res Ptn lowered Meritage Homes from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. Zelman & Associates upgraded Meritage Homes from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Meritage Homes from $151.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. StockNews.com lowered Meritage Homes from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $148.00 price target on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $172.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Meritage Homes news, CEO Phillippe Lord sold 2,500 shares of Meritage Homes stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.79, for a total value of $406,975.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 100,266 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,322,302.14. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Meritage Homes news, CAO Alison Sasser sold 355 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.61, for a total value of $54,176.55. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $132,618.09. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Phillippe Lord sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.79, for a total transaction of $406,975.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 100,266 shares in the company, valued at $16,322,302.14. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 3,998 shares of company stock valued at $635,171. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meritage Homes

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 91.6% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 205 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Carmel Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meritage Homes in the third quarter worth about $38,000. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 157.6% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 237 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter worth about $47,000. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter worth approximately $52,000. 98.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Meritage Homes Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $5.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.77 and a beta of 1.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $159.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $152.49.

About Meritage Homes

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.