Wright Investors Service Inc. Acquires 1,429 Shares of Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN)

Wright Investors Service Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) by 11.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 13,477 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,429 shares during the period. Wright Investors Service Inc.’s holdings in Lennar were worth $2,009,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LEN. RFG Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Lennar by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 3,847 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $573,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. grew its stake in shares of Lennar by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 4,144 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $520,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Lennar by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 4,009 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $450,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Lennar by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,810 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $315,000 after buying an additional 113 shares during the period. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC boosted its stake in Lennar by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 1,808 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $203,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. 81.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Lennar Stock Performance

Lennar stock traded up $4.01 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $155.89. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 983,177 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,100,403. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $159.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $141.96. The company has a market capitalization of $43.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.78, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.53. 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 Co. has a 12-month low of $102.90 and a 12-month high of $172.59.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 14th. The construction company reported $2.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.36. The firm had revenue of $7.31 billion during 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%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.12 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict 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 given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 23rd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.28%. Lennar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Amy Banse bought 1,575 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $157.00 per share, for a total transaction of $247,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,859 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,861,863. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 9.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LEN has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Lennar from $161.00 to $157.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Wedbush reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $144.00 price target on shares of Lennar in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Citigroup lifted their price target on Lennar from $179.00 to $198.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Lennar from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Lennar from $137.00 to $136.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus 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.