Bayhunt Capital LLC Purchases New Position in Meritage Homes Corporation $MTH

Key Points

• Bayhunt Capital LLC opened a new position in Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) in Q4, buying 120,397 shares worth about $7.92 million, which represents roughly 4.4% of Bayhunt's portfolio and made MTH its 13th largest holding (Bayhunt owned ~0.17% of Meritage at period end).
• Insider selling was notable: CEO Phillippe Lord sold 32,820 shares for about $2.51 million and EVP Javier Feliciano sold 3,580 shares, with insiders selling 47,622 shares (~$3.64 million) over the last 90 days and now owning 2.20% of the company.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a $84.33 target, and Meritage recently raised its quarterly dividend to $0.48 (annualized $1.92, a 2.9% yield).

Bayhunt Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 120,397 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $7,922,000. Meritage Homes makes up about 4.4% of Bayhunt Capital LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Bayhunt Capital LLC owned approximately 0.17% of Meritage Homes at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Meritage Homes by 265.5% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 402 shares of the construction company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. bought a new stake in Meritage Homes during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Meritage Homes by 194.9% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 699 shares of the construction company's stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in Meritage Homes by 25.7% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 808 shares of the construction company's stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Meritage Homes during the fourth quarter worth about $75,000. Institutional investors own 98.44% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MTH has been the topic of several research reports. Citizens Jmp initiated coverage on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. They set a "market outperform" rating and a $90.00 price objective on the stock. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. They set a "buy" rating and a $90.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group set a $95.00 price objective on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Bank of America reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $82.00 price objective (up from $75.00) on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $84.33.

Insider Transactions at Meritage Homes

In related news, CEO Phillippe Lord sold 32,820 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.49, for a total transaction of $2,510,401.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 260,389 shares in the company, valued at $19,917,154.61. This represents a 11.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Javier Feliciano sold 3,580 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.24, for a total transaction of $272,939.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 44,935 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,425,844.40. This trade represents a 7.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 47,622 shares of company stock worth $3,640,273. Corporate insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Meritage Homes Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE MTH opened at $66.53 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $69.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $69.75. The company has a market cap of $4.44 billion, a PE ratio of 10.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.50. Meritage Homes Corporation has a 52-week low of $58.03 and a 52-week high of $84.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 2.10 and a current ratio of 2.10.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The construction company reported $1.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.55 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.51 billion. Meritage Homes had a net margin of 7.73% and a return on equity of 9.28%. The business's revenue was down 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $4.72 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Meritage Homes Corporation will post 9.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th were paid a $0.48 dividend. This is a boost from Meritage Homes's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 17th. Meritage Homes's payout ratio is currently 30.38%.

About Meritage Homes

Meritage Homes Corporation is a national homebuilder and residential developer headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona. Founded in 1985 as Winchester Homes and later rebranded to Meritage Homes, the company specializes in designing, constructing and selling single‐family detached and attached homes. With a focus on energy efficiency and sustainable building practices, Meritage Homes markets its properties under the GreenSmart program, which integrates high‐performance features aimed at reducing long‐term energy and water consumption for homebuyers.

The company's core activities encompass land acquisition, residential community planning, home design, construction management and real estate sales.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MTH? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE:MTH - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.