Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Acquires New Holdings in Meritage Homes Corporation $MTH

Key Points

• Louisiana State Employees Retirement System initiated a new position in Meritage Homes during the first quarter, buying 29,600 shares valued at about $1.83 million.
• Meritage Homes reported weaker-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $0.86 versus $0.98 expected and revenue of $1.12 billion, down 17.5% year over year.
• The company recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.48 per share and offers an annualized yield of about 2.3%; analysts currently have a consensus rating of Hold with an average price target of $79.89.

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new position in shares of Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 29,600 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $1,830,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Salomon & Ludwin LLC increased its position in Meritage Homes by 63.9% in the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 372 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes by 265.5% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 402 shares of the construction company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the period. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Meritage Homes during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Meritage Homes by 194.9% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 699 shares of the construction company's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 462 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Meritage Homes in the fourth quarter worth $49,000. 98.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Meritage Homes Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of Meritage Homes stock opened at $83.93 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.60 billion, a PE ratio of 15.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 1.39. Meritage Homes Corporation has a 52 week low of $58.03 and a 52 week high of $85.38. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $69.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 1.96.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The construction company reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by ($0.12). Meritage Homes had a return on equity of 8.08% and a net margin of 6.86%.The firm had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.55 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.69 earnings per share. Meritage Homes's revenue for the quarter was down 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Meritage Homes Corporation will post 4.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meritage Homes Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th were issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. Meritage Homes's dividend payout ratio is presently 35.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meritage Homes

In other Meritage Homes news, CAO Alison Sasser sold 1,273 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were 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 approximately $474,147.74. This trade represents a 14.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MTH. Weiss Ratings raised Meritage Homes from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Wall Street Zen lowered Meritage Homes from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Meritage Homes from $62.00 to $58.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Truist Financial set a $80.00 price objective on Meritage Homes and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Meritage Homes currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $79.89.

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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