Meritage Homes (MTH) to Release Quarterly Earnings on Wednesday

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) is expected to announce its earnings results after the market closes on Wednesday, April 23rd. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings of $1.75 per share and revenue of $1.34 billion for the quarter. Investors interested in registering for the company's conference call can do so using this link.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $4.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.55 by $0.17. Meritage Homes had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 15.90%. On average, analysts expect Meritage Homes to post $9 EPS for the current fiscal year and $11 EPS for the next fiscal year.

Meritage Homes Stock Up 3.6 %

Shares of MTH stock traded up $2.29 on Friday, hitting $65.13. The stock had a trading volume of 839,969 shares, compared to its average volume of 882,547. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 1.61. The stock's 50 day moving average is $70.57 and its 200-day moving average is $81.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.98 and a beta of 1.69. Meritage Homes has a 52-week low of $59.27 and a 52-week high of $106.99.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.64%. This is a positive change from Meritage Homes's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. Meritage Homes's payout ratio is presently 13.16%.

Insider Transactions at Meritage Homes

In related news, Chairman Steven J. Hilton purchased 11,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $74.51 per share, for a total transaction of $819,610.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 811,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at $60,441,915.92. This trade represents a 1.37 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Alison Sasser sold 676 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total value of $48,692.28. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at $427,353.99. This represents a 10.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 1,683 shares of company stock worth $122,547. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on Meritage Homes from $97.00 to $90.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Meritage Homes from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Meritage Homes from $117.50 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Wedbush reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $103.00 target price on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Meritage Homes from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, March 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $106.25.

Meritage Homes Company Profile

Meritage Homes Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, designs and builds single-family attached and detached homes in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Homebuilding and Financial Services. It acquires and develops land; and constructs, markets, and sells homes for entry-level and first move-up buyers in Arizona, California, Colorado, Utah, Texas, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.