Centiva Capital LP Makes New Investment in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH)

Centiva Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 14,247 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $2,191,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Barclays PLC raised its stake in Meritage Homes by 18.4% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 211,043 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $43,279,000 after purchasing an additional 32,810 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes by 9.4% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 244,776 shares of the construction company's stock worth $50,196,000 after buying an additional 21,092 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,763 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,963,000 after buying an additional 534 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Meritage Homes by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 12,002 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,846,000 after buying an additional 981 shares during the period. Finally, Radnor Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Meritage Homes by 95.0% during the fourth quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC now owns 6,356 shares of the construction company's stock worth $978,000 after acquiring an additional 3,096 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.44% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other 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 transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Clinton Szubinski sold 595 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.29, for a total transaction 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,683 shares of company stock worth $122,547 over the last ninety days. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Meritage Homes Stock Performance

MTH traded up $1.97 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $70.18. 268,597 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 875,884. The stock has a market cap of $5.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.36 and a beta of 1.50. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $68.88 and a 200-day simple moving average of $78.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.75. Meritage Homes Co. has a 12 month low of $59.27 and a 12 month high of $106.99.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $1.69 earnings per share 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%. Meritage Homes's revenue was down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.06 EPS. Analysts anticipate 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 was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This is an increase from Meritage Homes's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Meritage Homes's dividend payout ratio is 14.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MTH has been the subject of several analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded Meritage Homes from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, March 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Meritage Homes from $90.00 to $77.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. UBS Group set a $107.00 target price on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Monday, May 5th. They set a "buy" rating and a $82.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Meritage Homes from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $97.72.

Meritage Homes 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.