Fox Run Management L.L.C. Buys Shares of 16,747 Meritage Homes Corporation $MTH

Key Points

• Fox Run Management disclosed a new fourth-quarter stake in Meritage Homes, buying 16,747 shares worth about $1.1 million. The filing comes amid broader institutional interest, with hedge funds and asset managers owning most of the company’s stock.
• Meritage Homes reported mixed quarterly results, posting EPS of $0.86 versus analyst expectations of $0.98 and revenue of $1.12 billion versus estimates of $1.55 billion. Revenue fell 17.5% from a year earlier, though the company maintained a 6.86% net margin.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.48 per share, or $1.92 annualized, for a yield of 2.7%. Meanwhile, analysts are split overall, with an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $79.89.

Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new stake in Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 16,747 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $1,102,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Meritage Homes during the fourth quarter valued at about $63,053,000. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in shares of Meritage Homes by 44.3% during the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,987,850 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $143,980,000 after purchasing an additional 609,866 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Meritage Homes by 58.9% during the second quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,423,013 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $95,299,000 after purchasing an additional 527,265 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Meritage Homes by 58.6% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,058,850 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $75,051,000 after purchasing an additional 391,297 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lodge Hill Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Meritage Homes during the third quarter valued at about $21,729,000. Institutional investors own 98.44% of the company's stock.

Meritage Homes Price Performance

Meritage Homes stock opened at $72.23 on Wednesday. The stock's 50 day moving average is $65.39 and its 200 day moving average is $68.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.96 and a quick ratio of 1.96. The firm has a market cap of $4.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.39. Meritage Homes Corporation has a one year low of $58.03 and a one year high of $84.74.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The construction company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by ($0.12). The company had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.55 billion. Meritage Homes had a return on equity of 8.08% and a net margin of 6.86%.Meritage Homes's revenue was down 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.69 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Meritage Homes Corporation will post 5.01 EPS for the current year.

Meritage Homes Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be paid a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. Meritage Homes's payout ratio is currently 35.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MTH has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Bank of America cut their price target on Meritage Homes from $74.00 to $72.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Meritage Homes from $62.00 to $58.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Wall Street Zen raised Meritage Homes from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. Zacks Research lowered Meritage Homes from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, UBS Group set a $86.00 price target on Meritage Homes and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $79.89.

Insider Activity at Meritage Homes

In related news, CAO Alison Sasser sold 1,273 shares of Meritage Homes stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.11, for a total value of $79,066.03. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 7,634 shares of the company's stock, valued at $474,147.74. The trade was a 14.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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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