Insider Selling: Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) EVP Sells $272,939.20 in Stock

Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE:MTH) EVP Javier Feliciano sold 3,580 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.24, for a total value of $272,939.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 44,935 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,425,844.40. This trade represents a 7.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Meritage Homes Stock Performance

MTH opened at $75.38 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 2.10 and a quick ratio of 2.10. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $72.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $72.60. Meritage Homes Corporation has a 1 year low of $59.27 and a 1 year high of $84.74. The company has a market capitalization of $5.04 billion, a PE ratio of 11.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.48.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The construction company reported $1.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.55 by $0.12. Meritage Homes had a return on equity of 9.28% and a net margin of 7.73%.The company had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.72 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Meritage Homes Corporation will post 9.44 EPS for the current year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. This is an increase from Meritage Homes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. Meritage Homes’s payout ratio is presently 27.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MTH has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Zacks Research lowered Meritage Homes from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Meritage Homes from $60.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Evercore set a $77.00 price objective on shares of Meritage Homes and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.63.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meritage Homes

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in Meritage Homes by 134.3% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 38,658 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,740,000 after buying an additional 22,162 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Meritage Homes by 51.7% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 12,937 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $917,000 after acquiring an additional 4,407 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Meritage Homes by 58.6% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,058,850 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $75,051,000 after acquiring an additional 391,297 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 111.0% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 32,971 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,337,000 after acquiring an additional 17,343 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in Meritage Homes by 102.8% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 319,150 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $22,621,000 after acquiring an additional 161,806 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.44% of the company’s stock.

Meritage Homes Company Profile

Meritage Homes Corporation is a national homebuilder and residential developer headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona. Founded in 1985 as Winchester Homes and later rebranded to Meritage Homes, the company specializes in designing, constructing and selling single‐family detached and attached homes. With a focus on energy efficiency and sustainable building practices, Meritage Homes markets its properties under the GreenSmart program, which integrates high‐performance features aimed at reducing long‐term energy and water consumption for homebuyers.

The company’s core activities encompass land acquisition, residential community planning, home design, construction management and real estate sales.