Meritage Homes Corporation $MTH Shares Sold by Swedbank AB

Key Points

• Swedbank AB has reduced its holdings in Meritage Homes by 18.2% during Q2, now owning approximately 0.23% of the company, worth around $11.26 million.
• Meritage Homes reported $2.04 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations, despite a 4.6% decline in year-over-year revenue.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.43 per share, yielding approximately 2.3%, with the payment date set for September 30.

Swedbank AB reduced its stake in Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) by 18.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 168,085 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 37,446 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB owned 0.23% of Meritage Homes worth $11,257,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes by 100.0% in the 1st quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 380 shares of the construction company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes by 166.5% in the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 581 shares of the construction company's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 363 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes by 77.7% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 606 shares of the construction company's stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Meritage Homes by 329.9% during the 1st quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 619 shares of the construction company's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 475 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Meritage Homes by 246.4% during the 1st quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 634 shares of the construction company's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 451 shares in the last quarter. 98.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Meritage Homes Stock Down 3.0%

NYSE:MTH traded down $2.28 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $73.17. 974,216 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 870,829. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $75.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $70.25. Meritage Homes Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $59.27 and a fifty-two week high of $103.76. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a market capitalization of $5.21 billion, a PE ratio of 6.58 and a beta of 1.35.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The construction company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. Meritage Homes had a net margin of 10.27% and a return on equity of 12.37%. The firm had revenue of $1.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.60 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.15 EPS. Meritage Homes's revenue for the quarter was down 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Meritage Homes Corporation will post 9.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meritage Homes Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 16th. Meritage Homes's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.47%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on MTH shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Meritage Homes from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 28th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Meritage Homes from $79.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday. Wedbush reduced their target price on shares of Meritage Homes from $103.00 to $90.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 25th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Meritage Homes from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of Meritage Homes to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meritage Homes currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $88.14.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meritage Homes

In related news, CEO Phillippe Lord sold 6,950 shares of Meritage Homes stock in a transaction on Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.01, for a total transaction of $556,069.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 221,320 shares in the company, valued at $17,707,813.20. This trade represents a 3.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Dennis V. Arriola acquired 2,200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $70.00 per share, for a total transaction of $154,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 9,512 shares of the company's stock, valued at $665,840. This trade represents a 30.09% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Meritage Homes

Meritage Homes Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, designs and builds single-family attached and detached homes in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Homebuilding and Financial Services. It acquires and develops land; and constructs, markets, and sells homes for entry-level and first move-up buyers in Arizona, California, Colorado, Utah, Texas, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.