Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) Shares Bought by Vest Financial LLC

Vest Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) by 137.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 37,620 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 21,782 shares during the period. Vest Financial LLC owned 0.05% of Meritage Homes worth $2,667,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MTH. Greenhaven Associates Inc. boosted its position in Meritage Homes by 94.1% during the 1st quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. now owns 1,434,368 shares of the construction company's stock worth $101,668,000 after purchasing an additional 695,355 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter worth $101,695,000. Groupama Asset Managment purchased a new stake in Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter worth $76,910,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Meritage Homes by 2,199.9% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 305,605 shares of the construction company's stock worth $47,008,000 after purchasing an additional 292,317 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its position in Meritage Homes by 205.5% during the 4th quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 418,884 shares of the construction company's stock worth $64,433,000 after purchasing an additional 281,773 shares during the period. 98.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Monday, May 5th. They set a "buy" rating and a $82.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Meritage Homes from $89.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Meritage Homes from $90.00 to $77.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Meritage Homes from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, UBS Group set a $107.00 price target on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One equities research 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. According to MarketBeat, Meritage Homes has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $97.72.

Meritage Homes Stock Performance

NYSE MTH traded down $1.31 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $63.93. The company's stock had a trading volume of 863,667 shares, compared to its average volume of 880,059. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $66.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $75.42. Meritage Homes Co. has a 52 week low of $59.27 and a 52 week high of $106.99. The stock has a market cap of $4.59 billion, a PE ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 1.37.

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

Meritage Homes Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.69%. Meritage Homes's payout ratio is currently 14.06%.

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.