MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. Buys 51,329 Shares of Meritage Homes Corporation $MTH

Key Points

• MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in Meritage Homes Corporation by 251.1% in Q1, acquiring over 51,329 shares to hold a total of 71,768 shares valued at approximately $5.08 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Vanguard Group Inc. and Long Pond Capital LP, significantly raised their stakes in Meritage Homes during the same period, reflecting increasing confidence in the company.
• Analysts have mixed sentiments about Meritage Homes, with ratings ranging from "strong-buy" to "neutral," and a current consensus price target of $87.71.

MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) by 251.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 71,768 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 51,329 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. owned about 0.10% of Meritage Homes worth $5,087,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MTH. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. increased its holdings in Meritage Homes by 100.0% in the first quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 380 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in Meritage Homes by 166.5% in the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 581 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 363 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Meritage Homes by 77.7% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 606 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares during the period. Byrne Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Meritage Homes by 329.9% in the first quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 619 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 475 shares during the period. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Meritage Homes by 246.4% in the first quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 634 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 451 shares during the period. 98.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Meritage Homes Stock Down 2.1%

NYSE MTH traded down $1.63 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $77.16. The company's stock had a trading volume of 915,766 shares, compared to its average volume of 981,938. Meritage Homes Corporation has a 52 week low of $59.27 and a 52 week high of $106.99. The company has a market capitalization of $5.49 billion, a PE ratio of 6.94 and a beta of 1.35. 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's 50-day simple moving average is $74.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $70.18.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The construction company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $1.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.60 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.15 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Meritage Homes Corporation will post 9.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meritage Homes Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 16th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Meritage Homes's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.47%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on MTH shares. Wedbush decreased their price target on Meritage Homes from $103.00 to $90.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 25th. Zelman & Associates upgraded Meritage Homes to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Meritage Homes from $70.00 to $60.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on Meritage Homes from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on Meritage Homes from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Meritage Homes has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $87.71.

Insider Activity at Meritage Homes

In related news, Director Dennis V. Arriola purchased 2,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 25th. The stock was bought at an average price of $70.00 per share, for a total transaction of $154,000.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 9,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $665,840. This trade represents a 30.09% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Phillippe Lord sold 6,950 shares of Meritage Homes stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.01, for a total transaction of $556,069.50. Following the completion of 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Meritage Homes Profile

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.