29,900 Shares in M.D.C. Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:MDC) Purchased by Louisiana State Employees Retirement System

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in M.D.C. Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:MDC - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 29,900 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $1,652,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in M.D.C. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $263,371,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in M.D.C. by 60.6% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,492,733 shares of the construction company's stock worth $137,723,000 after buying an additional 940,810 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in M.D.C. by 259.7% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 593,177 shares of the construction company's stock worth $18,744,000 after buying an additional 428,286 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in M.D.C. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $13,291,000. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in M.D.C. by 96.8% during the 2nd quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 646,753 shares of the construction company's stock worth $30,249,000 after buying an additional 318,101 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.08% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at M.D.C.

In related news, Director David E. Blackford sold 6,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.69, for a total value of $388,678.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 13,534 shares in the company, valued at approximately $848,446.46. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 23.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on MDC shares. Evercore ISI downgraded M.D.C. from an "outperform" rating to an "in-line" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $57.00 to $63.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. StockNews.com started coverage on M.D.C. in a research report on Friday. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. Finally, Raymond James reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of M.D.C. in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $52.13.

M.D.C. Price Performance

MDC remained flat at $62.98 during trading hours on Friday. M.D.C. Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $36.47 and a 52 week high of $63.00. The company has a quick ratio of 3.92, a current ratio of 9.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The company has a market capitalization of $4.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.93 and a beta of 1.54. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $62.72 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $53.92.

M.D.C. (NYSE:MDC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The construction company reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.06. M.D.C. had a return on equity of 12.32% and a net margin of 8.64%. The firm had revenue of $1.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.29 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that M.D.C. Holdings, Inc. will post 5.7 earnings per share for the current year.

M.D.C. Company Profile

M.DC Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the homebuilding and financial service businesses. Its homebuilding operations include purchasing finished lots or developing lots for the construction and sale primarily of single-family detached homes to first-time and first-time move-up homebuyers under the Richmond American Homes name.