Smead Capital Management Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN)

Smead Capital Management Inc. cut its position in Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN - Free Report) by 6.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,711,820 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 200,077 shares during the quarter. Lennar accounts for about 7.2% of Smead Capital Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its largest holding. Smead Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.95% of Lennar worth $404,170,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its position in Lennar by 10.7% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 12,184 shares of the construction company's stock worth $989,000 after purchasing an additional 1,173 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. increased its position in Lennar by 6.8% during the 1st quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 9,499 shares of the construction company's stock worth $771,000 after purchasing an additional 602 shares in the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. increased its position in Lennar by 172.1% during the 1st quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 14,925 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,256,000 after purchasing an additional 9,440 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC acquired a new position in Lennar during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,711,000. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. acquired a new position in Lennar during the 1st quarter worth approximately $200,000. 81.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lennar Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:LEN traded up $0.61 during trading on Thursday, reaching $152.49. The stock had a trading volume of 2,772,025 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,125,543. The stock has a market cap of $42.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.53. Lennar Co. has a 52 week low of $102.90 and a 52 week high of $172.59. The firm's fifty day moving average is $159.64 and its 200 day moving average is $141.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 5.47.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 14th. The construction company reported $2.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $7.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.39 billion. Lennar had a net margin of 11.59% and a return on equity of 15.90%. Lennar's revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.12 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Lennar Co. will post 14.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lennar Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 23rd. Lennar's dividend payout ratio is presently 14.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lennar news, Director Amy Banse acquired 1,575 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 10th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $157.00 per share, for a total transaction of $247,275.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 11,859 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,861,863. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 9.36% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LEN has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Lennar from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Lennar from $179.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Lennar from $175.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Lennar from $137.00 to $136.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a "market outperform" rating and set a $170.00 target price on shares of Lennar in a report on Friday, March 15th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lennar has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $163.88.

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.