Evercore ISI Downgrades Tri Pointe Homes (NYSE:TPH) to In-Line

Key Points

• Evercore ISI has downgraded Tri Pointe Homes from a "strong-buy" to a "hold" rating, reflecting a shift in analyst sentiment towards the stock.
• Tri Pointe Homes recently announced a $50 million share buyback program, suggesting the board believes its stock is currently undervalued.
• Despite the downgrade, the average analyst target price for Tri Pointe Homes is $39.25, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

Tri Pointe Homes (NYSE:TPH - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Evercore ISI from an "outperform" rating to an "in-line" rating in a report released on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have a $34.00 price objective on the construction company's stock, down from their previous price objective of $38.00. Evercore ISI's price target would indicate a potential upside of 5.13% from the stock's previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on TPH. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Tri Pointe Homes in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of Tri Pointe Homes from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Sunday, July 27th. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $43.00 target price on shares of Tri Pointe Homes in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Tri Pointe Homes from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Tri Pointe Homes currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $39.25.

Tri Pointe Homes Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:TPH opened at $32.34 on Tuesday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $34.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $32.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.23, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.30. Tri Pointe Homes has a one year low of $27.90 and a one year high of $46.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.79 and a quick ratio of 1.79.

Tri Pointe Homes (NYSE:TPH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The construction company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $884.01 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $810.77 million. Tri Pointe Homes had a net margin of 9.22% and a return on equity of 11.33%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 22.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.25 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Tri Pointe Homes will post 3.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Tri Pointe Homes announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, July 24th that permits the company to repurchase $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the construction company to buy up to 1.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Tri Pointe Homes

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Tri Pointe Homes in the 1st quarter worth about $43,906,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Tri Pointe Homes by 353.2% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 687,307 shares of the construction company's stock worth $21,788,000 after purchasing an additional 535,640 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its position in shares of Tri Pointe Homes by 54.8% in the 1st quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 1,255,057 shares of the construction company's stock worth $40,061,000 after purchasing an additional 444,153 shares during the period. AE Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Tri Pointe Homes by 4,456.8% during the 2nd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 348,918 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $11,148,000 after acquiring an additional 341,261 shares during the period. Finally, First Wilshire Securities Management Inc. purchased a new position in Tri Pointe Homes during the 1st quarter valued at about $9,987,000. Institutional investors own 97.01% of the company's stock.

About Tri Pointe Homes

Tri Pointe Homes, Inc engages in the design, construction, and sale of single-family attached and detached homes in the United States. The company operates through a portfolio of six regional home building brands comprising Maracay in Arizona; Pardee Homes in California and Nevada; Quadrant Homes in Washington; Trendmaker Homes in Texas; TRI Pointe Homes in California, Colorado, and the Carolinas; and Winchester Homes in Maryland and Northern Virginia.