Hancock Whitney Corp Raises Stock Holdings in Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN)

Hancock Whitney Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) by 37.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 72,861 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 19,708 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in Lennar were worth $10,920,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Boston Partners grew its position in Lennar by 21.5% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 23,775 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,089,000 after purchasing an additional 4,207 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lennar by 177.3% during the fourth quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 31,258 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,659,000 after buying an additional 19,985 shares during the last quarter. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services increased its position in Lennar by 331.8% in the 1st quarter. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services now owns 12,033 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,069,000 after acquiring an additional 9,246 shares during the period. Grayhawk Investment Strategies Inc. purchased a new stake in Lennar during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $838,000. Finally, Norden Group LLC acquired a new stake in Lennar during the 1st quarter worth approximately $5,592,000. 81.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lennar Trading Down 5.2 %

Shares of LEN opened at $182.48 on Friday. Lennar Co. has a fifty-two week low of $102.90 and a fifty-two week high of $193.80. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $176.53 and a two-hundred day moving average of $163.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 4.93. The company has a market capitalization of $50.11 billion, a PE ratio of 12.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.61.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, September 19th. The construction company reported $3.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.62 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $9.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.14 billion. Lennar had a return on equity of 15.93% and a net margin of 11.58%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.91 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Lennar Co. will post 14.16 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on LEN. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Lennar from $183.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lennar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $164.00 target price (down previously from $174.00) on shares of Lennar in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Lennar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $180.00 to $174.00 in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $144.00 target price on shares of Lennar in a research note on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lennar has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $174.61.

About Lennar

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.