ING Groep NV Sells 118,084 Shares of Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN)

Key Points

• ING Groep NV has significantly reduced its stake in Lennar Corporation, selling 118,084 shares and now holding only 17,617 shares, valued at $2,022,000.
• Several institutional investors have recently increased their positions in Lennar, with approximately 81.10% of the stock currently owned by these investors.
• Lennar's recent quarterly earnings report showed an EPS of $1.90, missing the consensus estimate, and its revenue for the quarter was down 4.4% year-over-year.

ING Groep NV decreased its position in shares of Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN - Free Report) by 87.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,617 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 118,084 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV's holdings in Lennar were worth $2,022,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new position in Lennar during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Lennar during the first quarter worth about $30,000. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Lennar during the first quarter worth about $33,000. Franchise Capital Ltd acquired a new position in Lennar during the first quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. raised its stake in Lennar by 139.9% during the first quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 343 shares of the construction company's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Wedbush reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $130.00 target price on shares of Lennar in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. JMP Securities lowered their price objective on Lennar from $150.00 to $130.00 and set a "market outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Lennar from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Lennar from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 21st. Finally, Zelman & Associates downgraded Lennar from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lennar has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $128.85.

Lennar Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of Lennar stock traded up $1.40 on Friday, reaching $120.91. 2,093,620 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,743,458. The company has a market capitalization of $31.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.13 and a beta of 1.29. Lennar Corporation has a 52 week low of $98.42 and a 52 week high of $193.80. The firm's 50-day moving average is $112.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $114.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 3.65.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN - Get Free Report) last posted 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.21 billion. Lennar had a return on equity of 12.73% and a net margin of 9.20%. Lennar'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 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Lennar Corporation will post 12.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 3rd. Lennar's payout ratio is 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.