M/I Homes (NYSE:MHO) Rating Lowered to "Strong Sell" at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded M/I Homes to “strong sell” from “hold,” despite the broader analyst consensus remaining “Moderate Buy” with a $164.25 price target.
• M/I Homes shares opened at $139.09, down 2.2%, below their 50-day moving average of $149.39. The stock has traded between $116.78 and $163.66 over the past year.
• The company narrowly exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting $3.14 in EPS and $1.06 billion in revenue, though revenue declined 6% year over year; CFO Phillip Creek also sold 10,000 shares.

M/I Homes (NYSE:MHO - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Zacks reports.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on MHO. New Street Research set a $172.00 target price on M/I Homes in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Zelman & Associates cut M/I Homes from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of M/I Homes in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Freedom Capital raised M/I Homes to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $164.25.

M/I Homes Trading Down 2.2%

Shares of NYSE MHO opened at $139.09 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $149.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $139.19. The stock has a market cap of $3.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.71 and a beta of 1.61. M/I Homes has a 52-week low of $116.78 and a 52-week high of $163.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.69 and a current ratio of 7.65.

M/I Homes (NYSE:MHO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The construction company reported $3.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.13 by $0.01. M/I Homes had a net margin of 7.44% and a return on equity of 11.53%. The company had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $4.42 earnings per share. M/I Homes's revenue was down 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that M/I Homes will post 12.12 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Phillip Creek sold 10,000 shares of M/I Homes stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.28, for a total value of $1,512,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 30,918 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,677,275.04. This trade represents a 24.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 3.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On M/I Homes

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MHO. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new position in M/I Homes in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of M/I Homes during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of M/I Homes by 90.6% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 284 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of M/I Homes in the 4th quarter valued at $49,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of M/I Homes by 133.7% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 409 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.14% of the company's stock.

M/I Homes Company Profile

M/I Homes, Inc is a publicly traded residential homebuilder founded in 1976 and headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. The company designs, markets and constructs single-family homes and townhome communities across the United States, offering a range of floor plans with customizable design options. Its product portfolio includes starter homes, move-up homes and luxury models, as well as multi-family residences in urban and suburban infill locations.

In addition to its core homebuilding operations, M/I Homes provides mortgage, title and closing services through its in-house affiliate M/I Financial Services.

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