Lennar (NYSE:LEN) Major Shareholder Purchases $51,861,753.32 in Stock

Key Points

• Berkshire Hathaway increased its Lennar stake by purchasing 667,118 shares for approximately $51.9 million, raising its ownership to 23.7 million shares valued at about $1.84 billion. This followed two other Lennar purchases totaling roughly $160.5 million earlier in the week.
• Lennar’s latest quarterly results fell short of expectations, with earnings per share of $1.23 versus the $1.29 consensus and revenue of $8.05 billion versus $8.32 billion expected. Revenue declined 8.7% year over year.
• The stock traded near $78, well below its 52-week high of $133.76, while analysts maintain a generally negative view: Lennar has an average “Reduce” rating, with 10 Sell, eight Hold, and one Buy recommendation.

Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN - Get Free Report) major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired 667,118 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 21st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $77.74 per share, for a total transaction of $51,861,753.32. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 23,719,109 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,843,923,533.66. The trade was a 2.89% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Large shareholders that own at least 10% of a company's shares are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

Berkshire Hathaway Inc also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, September 18th, Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought 1,381,397 shares of Lennar stock. The stock was purchased at an average price of $76.48 per share, with a total value of $105,649,242.56.
• On Thursday, September 17th, Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired 695,014 shares of Lennar stock. The stock was purchased at an average price of $78.98 per share, with a total value of $54,892,205.72.

Lennar Stock Performance

NYSE LEN traded up $1.57 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $78.00. The stock had a trading volume of 4,945,274 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,793,928. Lennar Corporation has a 52-week low of $75.70 and a 52-week high of $133.76. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $84.05 and a 200 day moving average of $88.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 4.94. The stock has a market cap of $18.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.39.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 16th. The construction company reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.29 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $8.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.32 billion. Lennar had a return on equity of 6.15% and a net margin of 4.09%.The business's quarterly revenue was down 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.29 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Lennar Corporation will post 5.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Lennar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on LEN. UBS Group lowered their price target on Lennar from $107.00 to $94.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of Lennar from $80.00 to $75.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. Benchmark raised shares of Lennar to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, September 3rd. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Lennar from $77.00 to $70.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 14th. Finally, Evercore lifted their target price on shares of Lennar from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Monday, June 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and ten have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $88.87.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lennar

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Anchor Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Lennar by 1,276.4% during the second quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 757 shares of the construction company's stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 702 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Lennar by 5.3% in the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 14,609 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,322,000 after acquiring an additional 735 shares during the last quarter. Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lennar during the 2nd quarter worth $317,000. Cidel Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Lennar by 15.6% during the second quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,873 shares of the construction company's stock worth $441,000 after purchasing an additional 657 shares during the period. Finally, Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC purchased a new position in Lennar during the second quarter worth about $232,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.10% of the company's stock.

Lennar Company Profile

Lennar Corporation is one of the largest homebuilders in the United States. Founded in 1954 and headquartered in Miami, Florida, the company designs, constructs, and sells single-family homes and communities for a range of buyers, including first-time, move-up, and active-adult purchasers.

Lennar operates across many of the country's major housing markets, including communities in the West, Southwest, Southeast, Mid-Atlantic, and other metropolitan areas. Its homebuilding operations offer a variety of floor plans and home designs, while the company also develops residential communities and provides related services such as mortgage financing, title, and closing services through its financial-services businesses.

In addition to traditional homebuilding, Lennar has expanded into multifamily development and other residential real-estate activities.

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