PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Buys 3,648 Shares of Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE:MTH)

Key Points

• PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Meritage Homes by 128.4%, owning 6,490 shares valued at $460,000 after purchasing 3,648 shares in the first quarter.
• Research analysts have rated Meritage Homes with an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of $91.13, with one strong buy rating and five buy ratings among them.
• Meritage Homes recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.43 per share, reflecting a yield of 2.2% and a payout ratio of 15.47%.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) by 128.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,490 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,648 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.'s holdings in Meritage Homes were worth $460,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position in Meritage Homes by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 3,758 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $578,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in Meritage Homes by 5.8% during the 1st quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 3,439 shares of the construction company's stock worth $244,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Meritage Homes by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC now owns 3,219 shares of the construction company's stock worth $495,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. grew its stake 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes by 41.7% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 676 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on MTH shares. Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of Meritage Homes to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. UBS Group set a $107.00 target price on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Meritage Homes in a research note on Monday, May 5th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $82.00 target price on the stock. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Meritage Homes from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Wedbush dropped their price target on Meritage Homes from $103.00 to $90.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Meritage Homes has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $91.13.

Insider Activity

In other Meritage Homes news, Director Joseph Keough purchased 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $66.16 per share, for a total transaction of $264,640.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 41,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,758,872. This represents a 10.61% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Dennis V. Arriola acquired 2,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 25th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $70.00 per share, with a total value of $154,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 9,512 shares in the company, 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 corporate insiders.

Meritage Homes Trading Up 5.0%

NYSE:MTH opened at $78.23 on Thursday. The firm's 50 day moving average is $69.34 and its 200 day moving average is $69.87. Meritage Homes Corporation has a 12 month low of $59.27 and a 12 month high of $106.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.57 billion, a PE ratio of 7.04 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

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

Meritage Homes Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th were issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Meritage Homes's dividend payout ratio is 15.47%.

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.

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