Citigroup Inc. Boosts Stake in Meritage Homes Corporation $MTH

Key Points

• Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in Meritage Homes Corporation by 55.5% during the first quarter, owning 179,312 shares valued at approximately $12.71 million by the end of the quarter.
• Various hedge funds raised their investments in Meritage Homes, with notable increases including Byrne Asset Management's 329.9% boost to their holdings.
• Meritage Homes announced a quarterly dividend of $0.43, contributing to an annualized yield of 2.2%, and its stock has a consensus price target of $87.71.

Citigroup Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) by 55.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 179,312 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 63,982 shares during the quarter. Citigroup Inc. owned approximately 0.25% of Meritage Homes worth $12,710,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MTH. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Meritage Homes by 96.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,999,889 shares of the construction company's stock worth $567,032,000 after buying an additional 3,925,148 shares during the period. Greenhaven Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in Meritage Homes by 94.1% during the first quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. now owns 1,434,368 shares of the construction company's stock worth $101,668,000 after buying an additional 695,355 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Meritage Homes by 102.7% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 985,239 shares of the construction company's stock worth $69,834,000 after buying an additional 499,063 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Meritage Homes by 75.0% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 710,281 shares of the construction company's stock worth $50,345,000 after buying an additional 304,427 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Meritage Homes by 95.9% during the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 598,694 shares of the construction company's stock worth $42,435,000 after buying an additional 293,089 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.44% of the company's stock.

Meritage Homes Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MTH traded up $1.1390 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $78.3690. The company had a trading volume of 228,198 shares, compared to its average volume of 983,390. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $70.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $69.65. The stock has a market cap of $5.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.06 and a beta of 1.29. Meritage Homes Corporation has a 1 year low of $59.27 and a 1 year high of $106.99. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The construction company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.60 billion. Meritage Homes had a net margin of 10.27% and a return on equity of 12.37%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.15 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Meritage Homes Corporation will post 9.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meritage Homes Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th were given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. Meritage Homes's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.47%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MTH has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Meritage Homes from $70.00 to $60.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 28th. Zelman & Associates raised shares of Meritage Homes to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Meritage Homes from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Monday, May 5th. They set a "buy" rating and a $82.00 target price for the company. Finally, UBS Group set a $107.00 target price on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $87.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meritage Homes

In related news, Director Dennis V. Arriola acquired 2,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $70.00 per share, with a total value of $154,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 9,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $665,840. This trade represents a 30.09% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Joseph Keough acquired 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $66.16 per share, for a total transaction of $264,640.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 41,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,758,872. This represents a 10.61% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Meritage Homes

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.