Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" from Brokerages

Shares of Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN - Get Free Report) have received a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the nineteen research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $150.07.

A number of analysts have weighed in on LEN shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Lennar from $141.00 to $120.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Lennar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an "in-line" rating and set a $131.00 price objective (down from $159.00) on shares of Lennar in a research note on Monday, March 24th. StockNews.com raised shares of Lennar from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Lennar from $141.00 to $128.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lennar

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. MBB Public Markets I LLC acquired a new position in Lennar in the first quarter valued at approximately $298,000. Ascent Group LLC lifted its holdings in Lennar by 13.4% in the first quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 1,862 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $214,000 after buying an additional 220 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new position in Lennar in the first quarter valued at approximately $667,000. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. lifted its holdings in Lennar by 3.4% in the first quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 3,708 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $426,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the period. Finally, Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new position in Lennar in the first quarter valued at approximately $2,542,000. 81.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lennar Stock Performance

NYSE:LEN opened at $111.67 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.46 billion, a PE ratio of 7.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 4.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. Lennar has a 12-month low of $98.42 and a 12-month high of $187.61. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $110.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $132.59.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The construction company reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.70 by $0.44. Lennar had a return on equity of 13.93% and a net margin of 11.10%. The business had revenue of $7.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.57 EPS. Lennar's quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Lennar will post 12.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 23rd were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 23rd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.79%. Lennar's dividend payout ratio is currently 14.57%.

About Lennar

Lennar Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a homebuilder primarily under the Lennar brand in the United States. It operates through Homebuilding East, Homebuilding Central, Homebuilding Texas, Homebuilding West, Financial Services, Multifamily, and Lennar Other segments. The company's homebuilding operations include the construction and sale of single-family attached and detached homes, as well as the purchase, development, and sale of residential land; and development, construction, and management of multifamily rental properties.

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