Bank of America Initiates Coverage on Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH)

Bank of America started coverage on shares of Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) in a report issued on Monday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage issued a buy rating and a $82.00 target price on the construction company’s stock.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Meritage Homes from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, March 24th. UBS Group set a $107.00 price target on shares of Meritage Homes in a report on Friday, April 25th. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $103.00 price objective on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Seaport Res Ptn raised Meritage Homes from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on Meritage Homes from $90.00 to $77.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $97.72.

Meritage Homes Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MTH opened at $68.29 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market cap of $4.91 billion, a PE ratio of 5.22 and a beta of 1.50. The company’s fifty day moving average is $69.20 and its 200 day moving average is $79.60. Meritage Homes has a 52 week low of $59.27 and a 52 week high of $106.99.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last released 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 12.29% and a return on equity of 15.90%. The company had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $5.06 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Meritage Homes will post 9.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.52%. This is a positive change from Meritage Homes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Meritage Homes’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.06%.

Insider Activity at Meritage Homes

In related news, COO Clinton Szubinski sold 595 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.29, for a total value of $43,607.55. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 30,547 shares in the company, valued at $2,238,789.63. This represents a 1.91 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Steven J. Hilton acquired 11,000 shares of Meritage Homes stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $74.51 per share, with a total value of $819,610.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 811,192 shares in the company, valued at $60,441,915.92. This represents a 1.37 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,683 shares of company stock worth $122,547 over the last ninety days. 2.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meritage Homes

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. boosted its stake in Meritage Homes by 100.0% in the 1st quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 380 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of Meritage Homes in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in shares of Meritage Homes by 545.5% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 213 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes by 77.7% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 606 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 329.9% during the first quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 619 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 475 shares in the last quarter. 98.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.