Seaport Research Partners Reaffirms Sell Rating for Lennar (NYSE:LEN)

Key Points

• Seaport Research Partners reaffirmed a sell rating on Lennar and cut its price target to $74 (from $140), implying roughly a 16.3% downside from the prior close.
• Lennar recently missed the quarter, reporting EPS of $0.88 versus $0.95 expected and revenue of $6.62B (down 13.3% YoY vs. $6.90B estimate), a weak print that likely spurred analyst downgrades.
• Multiple major firms (JPMorgan, Evercore, UBS, Barclays) have lowered targets or ratings, leaving a MarketBeat consensus of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $101.14.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "sell" rating restated by investment analysts at Seaport Research Partners in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $74.00 price target on the construction company's stock, down from their previous price target of $140.00. Seaport Research Partners' price objective suggests a potential downside of 16.30% from the stock's previous close.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Lennar from $115.00 to $80.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Citizens Jmp reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Lennar in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Lennar from $122.00 to $107.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Evercore cut shares of Lennar from an "in-line" rating to an "underperform" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $114.00 to $92.00 in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Lennar from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and eight have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $101.14.

Lennar Trading Up 2.2%

Lennar stock opened at $88.41 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 4.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $104.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $114.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.70, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.47. Lennar has a 52-week low of $83.03 and a 52-week high of $144.24.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 12th. The construction company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.95 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $6.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.90 billion. Lennar had a net margin of 5.39% and a return on equity of 7.80%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.14 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Lennar will post 12.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Lennar

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Guerra Advisors Inc bought a new stake in shares of Lennar in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Lennar during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new position in Lennar during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. DV Equities LLC purchased a new position in Lennar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, High Point Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Lennar in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. 81.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Lennar

Lennar Corporation NYSE: LEN is a U.S.-based homebuilder and real estate company that designs, constructs and sells residential housing. The company offers a range of product types including single-family detached homes, townhomes and condominiums, serving buyers from entry-level and first-time purchasers to move-up, active-adult and luxury segments. Lennar also develops master-planned communities and manages land acquisition and entitlement activities that support its homebuilding operations.

In addition to home construction and sales, Lennar provides a suite of ancillary services intended to streamline the purchase process and capture additional value.

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