Cetera Investment Advisers Buys 18,218 Shares of Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN)

Key Points

• Cetera Investment Advisers increased its stake in Lennar Corporation by 58.2%, holding 49,544 shares valued at approximately $5.69 million as of the latest quarter.
• Numerous institutional investors, including the Manufacturers Life Insurance Company and D1 Capital Partners L.P., also raised their stakes in Lennar, with institutional ownership now representing 81.10% of the company's stock.
• Analysts have mixed views on Lennar, with one rating it a "sell," fourteen as "hold," and two as "buy," while the average price target has been reduced to $128.85.

Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its position in shares of Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN - Free Report) by 58.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 49,544 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 18,218 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers' holdings in Lennar were worth $5,687,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in Lennar by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 6,116,558 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $834,115,000 after acquiring an additional 213,003 shares during the last quarter. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Lennar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $218,533,000. Eminence Capital LP boosted its holdings in Lennar by 43.4% in the fourth quarter. Eminence Capital LP now owns 685,225 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $93,444,000 after acquiring an additional 207,343 shares during the last quarter. D1 Capital Partners L.P. boosted its holdings in Lennar by 67.3% in the fourth quarter. D1 Capital Partners L.P. now owns 672,433 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $88,116,000 after acquiring an additional 270,433 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Man Group plc boosted its holdings in Lennar by 112.5% in the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 506,722 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $69,102,000 after acquiring an additional 268,209 shares during the last quarter. 81.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays reduced their target price on Lennar from $110.00 to $95.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Bank of America cut their price target on Lennar from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Lennar from $122.00 to $98.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Lennar from $120.00 to $110.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Wedbush restated a "neutral" rating and set a $130.00 price target on shares of Lennar in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $128.85.

Lennar Stock Up 3.4%

NYSE LEN traded up $3.79 on Friday, reaching $115.97. The company had a trading volume of 3,639,324 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,010,662. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.59, a P/E/G ratio of 4.92 and a beta of 1.29. The company's fifty day moving average is $110.63 and its 200 day moving average is $114.79. Lennar Corporation has a 52-week low of $98.42 and a 52-week high of $193.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 3.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, June 16th. The construction company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by ($0.04). Lennar had a net margin of 9.20% and a return on equity of 12.73%. The company had revenue of $8.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.21 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.45 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Lennar Corporation will post 12.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Lennar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.54%.

About Lennar

Lennar Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a homebuilder primarily under the Lennar brand in the United States. It operates through Homebuilding East, Homebuilding Central, Homebuilding Texas, Homebuilding West, Financial Services, Multifamily, and Lennar Other segments. The company's homebuilding operations include the construction and sale of single-family attached and detached homes, as well as the purchase, development, and sale of residential land; and development, construction, and management of multifamily rental properties.