Lazard Asset Management LLC Grows Position in Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN)

Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN - Free Report) by 100.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 30,435 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 15,241 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings in Lennar were worth $4,150,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lennar by 69.4% during the 4th quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 183 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Lennar by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 28,836 shares of the construction company's stock worth $3,932,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Lennar by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,284 shares of the construction company's stock worth $584,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust lifted its holdings in Lennar by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 5,220 shares of the construction company's stock worth $712,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lake Street Advisors Group LLC lifted its holdings in Lennar by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 3,201 shares of the construction company's stock worth $436,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. 81.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on LEN. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on Lennar from $141.00 to $128.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Lennar from $120.00 to $110.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Lennar from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of Lennar from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI reaffirmed an "in-line" rating and issued a $131.00 price target (down previously from $159.00) on shares of Lennar in a report on Monday, March 24th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $150.07.

Lennar Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE LEN traded down $1.17 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $108.27. The company had a trading volume of 594,530 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,612,816. The business's 50-day moving average is $110.40 and its 200-day moving average is $131.49. The company has a current ratio of 4.71, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The stock has a market cap of $28.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.41. Lennar Co. has a 52 week low of $98.42 and a 52 week high of $187.61.

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

Lennar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 23rd were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 23rd. Lennar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.57%.

Lennar Company Profile

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.