Meritage Homes FY2026 EPS Forecast Lowered by Wolfe Research

Key Points

• Wolfe Research lowered Meritage Homes’ FY2026 EPS forecast to $4.85 from $5.03, below the current consensus estimate of $5.00; its Q4 2026 EPS estimate is $1.53.
• Meritage Homes beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $1.42 EPS versus $1.30 expected, but revenue fell 14.1% year over year to $1.41 billion and missed estimates.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus “Hold” rating and average price target of $79.25. Shares were trading at $74.61, up 3.2%, while the company maintained a quarterly dividend of $0.48 per share.

Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) - Equities research analysts at Wolfe Research dropped their FY2026 earnings per share estimates for Meritage Homes in a research note issued on Thursday, July 30th. Wolfe Research analyst T. Allinson now forecasts that the construction company will post earnings per share of $4.85 for the year, down from their previous forecast of $5.03. The consensus estimate for Meritage Homes' current full-year earnings is $5.00 per share. Wolfe Research also issued estimates for Meritage Homes' Q4 2026 earnings at $1.53 EPS.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The construction company reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.12. Meritage Homes had a return on equity of 7.13% and a net margin of 6.11%.The firm had revenue of $1.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.04 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 14.1% on a year-over-year basis.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Meritage Homes from $74.00 to $72.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 20th. Zelman & Associates downgraded shares of Meritage Homes from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Meritage Homes from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 25th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $88.00 price objective (up from $86.00) on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Friday. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Meritage Homes from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Meritage Homes presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $79.25.

Meritage Homes Trading Up 3.2%

Shares of MTH stock opened at $74.61 on Wednesday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $74.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $70.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 1.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.61, a PEG ratio of 5.34 and a beta of 1.36. Meritage Homes has a fifty-two week low of $58.03 and a fifty-two week high of $85.38.

Meritage Homes Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th were issued a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 16th. Meritage Homes's dividend payout ratio is presently 40.17%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Alison Sasser sold 1,273 shares of Meritage Homes stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.11, for a total transaction of $79,066.03. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 7,634 shares in the company, valued at $474,147.74. The trade was a 14.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meritage Homes

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Abacus Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meritage Homes in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,880,000. Bayhunt Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter worth approximately $7,922,000. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $9,003,000. South Shore Capital Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $543,000. Finally, Aberdeen Group plc lifted its holdings in Meritage Homes by 17.3% in the fourth quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 305,475 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $20,100,000 after acquiring an additional 44,975 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.44% of the company's stock.

Meritage Homes Company Profile

Meritage Homes Corporation is a national homebuilder and residential developer headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona. Founded in 1985 as Winchester Homes and later rebranded to Meritage Homes, the company specializes in designing, constructing and selling single‐family detached and attached homes. With a focus on energy efficiency and sustainable building practices, Meritage Homes markets its properties under the GreenSmart program, which integrates high‐performance features aimed at reducing long‐term energy and water consumption for homebuyers.

The company's core activities encompass land acquisition, residential community planning, home design, construction management and real estate sales.

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