Gabelli Funds LLC Grows Position in Toll Brothers Inc. $TOL

Key Points

• Gabelli Funds LLC boosted its stake in Toll Brothers by 136.4% during Q3, adding 10,500 shares to hold 18,200 shares valued at about $2.514 million.
• Toll Brothers beat expectations for the quarter with EPS of $2.19 vs. $2.05 and revenue of $2.15 billion (up 15.4% YoY), prompting several brokerages to raise price targets and a consensus "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $165.25.
• Significant insider selling occurred recently: Director Paul E. Shapiro sold 3,965 shares and CEO Douglas C. Jr. Yearley sold 45,116 shares, cutting their holdings by 3.23% and 12.31%, respectively.

Gabelli Funds LLC grew its position in Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE:TOL - Free Report) by 136.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,200 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 10,500 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC's holdings in Toll Brothers were worth $2,514,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Toll Brothers in the second quarter valued at $705,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Toll Brothers by 4.8% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 51,934 shares of the construction company's stock worth $5,927,000 after purchasing an additional 2,398 shares during the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc purchased a new stake in Toll Brothers during the second quarter valued at $332,000. Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in Toll Brothers by 5.0% during the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 32,353 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $3,692,000 after purchasing an additional 1,543 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Penserra Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Toll Brothers by 20.7% during the second quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 5,178 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $590,000 after purchasing an additional 887 shares during the last quarter. 91.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Toll Brothers news, Director Paul E. Shapiro sold 3,965 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.68, for a total value of $581,586.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 118,680 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,407,982.40. This trade represents a 3.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Douglas C. Jr. Yearley sold 45,116 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.42, for a total value of $7,237,508.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 321,256 shares of the company's stock, valued at $51,535,887.52. This trade represents a 12.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.37% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Toll Brothers Stock Down 1.0%

NYSE TOL opened at $145.71 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 4.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Toll Brothers Inc. has a 52 week low of $86.67 and a 52 week high of $168.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.41, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a fifty day moving average of $149.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $141.64.

Toll Brothers (NYSE:TOL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The construction company reported $2.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.05 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $2.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.86 billion. Toll Brothers had a net margin of 12.26% and a return on equity of 16.83%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 15.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.75 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Toll Brothers Inc. will post 13.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Toll Brothers Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 9th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 9th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Toll Brothers's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.14%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on TOL. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Toll Brothers from $144.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Toll Brothers from $140.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Oppenheimer reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $180.00 price target (up from $177.00) on shares of Toll Brothers in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Citizens Jmp reissued a "market outperform" rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Toll Brothers in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Toll Brothers from $141.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Toll Brothers has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $165.25.

About Toll Brothers

Toll Brothers, Inc is a publicly traded homebuilding company that focuses on designing and constructing luxury residential properties. The company's core business encompasses a broad range of housing products, including custom single-family homes, upscale condominium communities and rental apartment ventures. Toll Brothers emphasizes high-end finishes and architectural craftsmanship, positioning itself in the premium segment of the U.S. housing market.

In addition to traditional homebuilding, Toll Brothers operates specialized divisions to address evolving consumer preferences.

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