Sophron Capital Management L.P. Invests $4.72 Million in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH)

Sophron Capital Management L.P. acquired a new position in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 30,696 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $4,722,000. Meritage Homes comprises approximately 1.9% of Sophron Capital Management L.P.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pinnacle Holdings LLC bought a new position in Meritage Homes in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in Meritage Homes by 545.5% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 213 shares of the construction company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter worth $92,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Meritage Homes by 235.1% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 677 shares of the construction company's stock worth $104,000 after acquiring an additional 475 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its holdings in Meritage Homes by 38.9% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,122 shares of the construction company's stock worth $173,000 after acquiring an additional 314 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.44% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MTH has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Meritage Homes from $90.00 to $77.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Meritage Homes from $89.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group set a $107.00 target price on shares of Meritage Homes in a report on Friday, April 25th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Meritage Homes in a report on Monday, May 5th. They set a "buy" rating and a $82.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Meritage Homes from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, March 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $97.72.

Meritage Homes Stock Performance

Meritage Homes stock traded up $0.23 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $64.30. The company had a trading volume of 1,176,009 shares, compared to its average volume of 882,882. The firm has a market cap of $4.62 billion, a PE ratio of 4.92 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.75. Meritage Homes Co. has a one year low of $59.27 and a one year high of $106.99. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $67.97 and a 200 day moving average of $77.80.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $1.69 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.71 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. Meritage Homes had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 15.90%. The firm's revenue was down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $5.06 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Meritage Homes Co. will post 9.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Meritage Homes Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.67%. Meritage Homes's dividend payout ratio is presently 14.06%.

Meritage Homes Company 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.