Balyasny Asset Management L.P. Sells 273,060 Shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH)

Balyasny Asset Management L.P. cut its stake in shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) by 48.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 293,014 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 273,060 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. owned approximately 0.40% of Meritage Homes worth $45,071,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MTH. Pinnacle Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in Meritage Homes in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Allworth Financial LP increased its position in Meritage Homes by 545.5% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 213 shares of the construction company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Meritage Homes in the fourth quarter valued at $92,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Meritage Homes by 235.1% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 677 shares of the construction company's stock worth $104,000 after purchasing an additional 475 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 38.9% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,122 shares of the construction company's stock worth $173,000 after acquiring an additional 314 shares in the last quarter. 98.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MTH has been the topic of several analyst reports. UBS Group set a $107.00 target price on Meritage Homes in a report on Friday, April 25th. Wedbush restated a "neutral" rating and set a $103.00 target price on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Meritage Homes in a report on Monday, May 5th. They set a "buy" rating and a $82.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Meritage Homes from $89.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Meritage Homes from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, March 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $97.72.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman Steven J. Hilton bought 11,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $74.51 per share, for a total transaction of $819,610.00. Following the purchase, the chairman now owns 811,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $60,441,915.92. This trade represents a 1.37 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Clinton Szubinski sold 595 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $2,238,789.63. This trade represents a 1.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 1,683 shares of company stock worth $122,547. 2.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Meritage Homes Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MTH traded down $0.97 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $68.22. 460,084 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 878,270. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $68.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $78.99. 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 12 month low of $59.27 and a 12 month high of $106.99. The firm has a market cap of $4.90 billion, a PE ratio of 5.22 and a beta of 1.50.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.71 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. Meritage Homes had a return on equity of 15.90% and a net margin of 12.29%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.06 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Meritage Homes Co. will post 9.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This is a positive change from Meritage Homes's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.52%. Meritage Homes's dividend payout ratio is presently 14.06%.

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.