Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN) Given Consensus Rating of "Reduce" by Analysts

Key Points

• Consensus rating "Reduce": Nineteen analysts cover Lennar with a consensus "Reduce" — 8 sell, 10 hold and 1 buy — and an average 12-month price target of about $99.87.
• Recent results disappointed: Lennar reported $0.88 EPS vs. $0.95 expected and revenue of $6.62 billion (vs. $6.90B est.), with revenue down 13.3% year‑over‑year.
• Shareholder and dividend update: the company declared a $0.50 quarterly dividend (annualized $2.00, ~2.3% yield) and is heavily institutionally owned (about 81.1%) with several large funds materially increasing stakes.

Shares of Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus rating of "Reduce" from the nineteen brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $99.8667.

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on LEN shares. Argus cut their price target on shares of Lennar from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Lennar from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of Lennar from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Lennar from $122.00 to $107.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Citizens Jmp reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Lennar in a report on Wednesday, January 7th.

Lennar Price Performance

Shares of Lennar stock opened at $88.55 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 4.77. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $95.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $110.36. Lennar has a twelve month low of $83.03 and a twelve month high of $144.24. The firm has a market cap of $21.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.41.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 12th. The construction company reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.95 by ($0.07). Lennar had a net margin of 5.39% and a return on equity of 7.80%. The business had revenue of $6.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.14 earnings per share. Lennar's revenue was down 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Lennar will post 5.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 22nd. Lennar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.74%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lennar

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LEN. Viking Global Investors LP grew its holdings in Lennar by 86.7% during the second quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 2,523,594 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $279,135,000 after purchasing an additional 1,172,068 shares during the period. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. grew its holdings in Lennar by 90.9% during the fourth quarter. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. now owns 1,963,373 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $201,835,000 after purchasing an additional 934,856 shares during the period. Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new position in Lennar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $95,941,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC grew its holdings in Lennar by 14.6% during the third quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 4,732,654 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $596,504,000 after purchasing an additional 603,004 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia grew its holdings in Lennar by 1,303.1% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 490,105 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $50,383,000 after purchasing an additional 455,174 shares during the period. 81.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Lennar Company Profile

Lennar Corporation NYSE: LEN is a U.S.-based homebuilder and real estate company that designs, constructs and sells residential housing. The company offers a range of product types including single-family detached homes, townhomes and condominiums, serving buyers from entry-level and first-time purchasers to move-up, active-adult and luxury segments. Lennar also develops master-planned communities and manages land acquisition and entitlement activities that support its homebuilding operations.

In addition to home construction and sales, Lennar provides a suite of ancillary services intended to streamline the purchase process and capture additional value.

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