Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC Invests $10.53 Million in Meritage Homes Corporation $MTH

Key Points

• Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC opened a new position in Meritage Homes, buying 145,400 shares valued at about $10.53 million, representing roughly 0.21% ownership.
• Company insiders have been selling recently: CEO Phillippe Lord sold 32,820 shares (≈$2.51 million) and insiders have sold 47,622 shares worth $3.64 million over the last 90 days, leaving insiders with about 2.20% ownership.
• Meritage raised its quarterly dividend to $0.48 (annualized $1.92), a 3.0% yield, with an ex-dividend date of March 17 and a pay date of March 31.

Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 145,400 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $10,531,000. Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC owned about 0.21% of Meritage Homes as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Meritage Homes by 194.9% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 699 shares of the construction company's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 462 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes by 366.8% during the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,489 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $108,000 after acquiring an additional 1,170 shares during the last quarter. Archer Investment Corp lifted its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 11.4% in the third quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 1,559 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $113,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Meritage Homes by 201.4% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,736 shares of the construction company's stock worth $126,000 after acquiring an additional 1,160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MAI Capital Management boosted its stake in shares of Meritage Homes by 612.5% in the third quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 2,451 shares of the construction company's stock worth $178,000 after acquiring an additional 2,107 shares during the last quarter. 98.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Phillippe Lord sold 32,820 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 260,389 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,917,154.61. This trade represents a 11.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Javier Feliciano sold 3,580 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.24, for a total transaction of $272,939.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 44,935 shares in the company, valued at $3,425,844.40. The trade was a 7.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 47,622 shares of company stock worth $3,640,273. Insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on MTH shares. Zacks Research downgraded Meritage Homes from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Meritage Homes from $78.00 to $76.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Evercore set a $77.00 target price on shares of Meritage Homes and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. UBS Group set a $95.00 target price on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Citizens Jmp assumed coverage on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. They set a "market outperform" rating and a $90.00 price target on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $84.33.

Meritage Homes Stock Performance

Shares of Meritage Homes stock opened at $63.06 on Monday. The business's 50 day moving average price is $73.32 and its 200 day moving average price is $71.90. The company has a market cap of $4.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.98, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.46. 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 Corporation has a one year low of $59.27 and a one year high of $84.74.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $1.55 by $0.12. Meritage Homes had a return on equity of 9.28% and a net margin of 7.73%.The company had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.72 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Meritage Homes Corporation will post 9.44 EPS for the current year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a $0.48 dividend. This is an increase from Meritage Homes's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. Meritage Homes's payout ratio is currently 27.22%.

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.

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