Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) Trading 5.5% Higher - Still a Buy?

Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report)'s share price traded up 5.5% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $70.12 and last traded at $70.67. 114,471 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 873,247 shares. The stock had previously closed at $66.97.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Meritage Homes from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, March 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Meritage Homes from $89.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Meritage Homes from $90.00 to $77.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. UBS Group set a $107.00 price target on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on Meritage Homes in a research report on Monday, May 5th. They set a "buy" rating and a $82.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $97.72.

Meritage Homes Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $5.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.80 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a quick ratio of 2.28, a current ratio of 2.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The business's 50 day moving average is $66.33 and its 200-day moving average is $72.27.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $1.69 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.71 by ($0.02). Meritage Homes had a net margin of 11.50% and a return on equity of 14.28%. The business had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $5.06 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Meritage Homes Corporation will post 9.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meritage Homes Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th were paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. Meritage Homes's payout ratio is 14.06%.

Insider Activity at Meritage Homes

In related news, Director Joseph Keough purchased 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $66.16 per share, with a total value of $264,640.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 41,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,758,872. This trade represents a 10.61% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Meritage Homes

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes by 96.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,999,889 shares of the construction company's stock worth $567,032,000 after buying an additional 3,925,148 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Meritage Homes by 93.9% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,926,900 shares of the construction company's stock worth $207,456,000 after acquiring an additional 1,417,024 shares during the last quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. increased its holdings in Meritage Homes by 94.1% in the 1st quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. now owns 1,434,368 shares of the construction company's stock worth $101,668,000 after purchasing an additional 695,355 shares in the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC raised its position in Meritage Homes by 95.7% in the first quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,352,648 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $95,876,000 after purchasing an additional 661,310 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Long Pond Capital LP raised its position in Meritage Homes by 592.7% in the first quarter. Long Pond Capital LP now owns 1,125,995 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $79,811,000 after purchasing an additional 963,438 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.44% of the company's stock.

About Meritage Homes

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.