FORA Capital LLC Reduces Stake in Lennar Corporation $LEN

Key Points

• FORA Capital LLC has decreased its stake in Lennar Corporation by 8.8%, now owning 45,282 shares valued at approximately $5.2 million.
• Recent analyst ratings indicate a negative trend, with target prices lowered by firms including JMP Securities and UBS Group, suggesting a consensus rating of "Hold".
• Lennar's quarterly earnings reported an EPS of $1.90, slightly below estimates, while revenue decreased 4.4% year-over-year.

FORA Capital LLC reduced its position in Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN - Free Report) by 8.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 45,282 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 4,352 shares during the period. FORA Capital LLC's holdings in Lennar were worth $5,197,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of LEN. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Lennar in the 4th quarter worth $218,533,000. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd bought a new position in Lennar in the 1st quarter worth $41,788,000. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd bought a new position in Lennar in the 1st quarter worth $37,055,000. Berkshire Asset Management LLC PA bought a new position in Lennar in the 1st quarter worth $33,394,000. Finally, Man Group plc raised its holdings in Lennar by 112.5% in the 4th quarter. Man Group plc now owns 506,722 shares of the construction company's stock worth $69,102,000 after purchasing an additional 268,209 shares during the period. 81.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. JMP Securities decreased their target price on Lennar from $150.00 to $130.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 20th. Zelman & Associates cut Lennar from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Lennar from $164.00 to $146.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Lennar from $131.00 to $114.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Lennar from $128.00 to $114.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and fourteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $128.85.

Lennar Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of LEN stock opened at $134.88 on Tuesday. Lennar Corporation has a 52-week low of $98.42 and a 52-week high of $193.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 3.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.93 billion, a PE ratio of 11.16, a PEG ratio of 5.76 and a beta of 1.29. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $116.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $114.17.

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

Lennar Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 was Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Lennar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.54%.

Lennar Profile

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.

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