Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) Position Reduced by State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lessened its position in shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,035 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 708 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Meritage Homes were worth $2,005,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hennessy Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Meritage Homes in the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,147,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new stake in Meritage Homes in the third quarter worth about $44,029,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Meritage Homes in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,365,000. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes by 75.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 347,227 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $71,206,000 after buying an additional 148,898 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Westfield Capital Management Co. LP raised its holdings in Meritage Homes by 26.9% during the 3rd quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 483,159 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $99,081,000 after buying an additional 102,502 shares during the period. 98.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Meritage Homes Stock Performance

Shares of MTH opened at $73.84 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $80.38 and its 200-day moving average is $90.04. Meritage Homes Co. has a 12 month low of $71.05 and a 12 month high of $106.99. The firm has a market cap of $5.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.65 and a beta of 1.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $4.72 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.55 by $0.17. Meritage Homes had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 15.90%. Equities analysts expect that Meritage Homes Co. will post 9.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This is an increase from Meritage Homes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Meritage Homes’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.47%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on MTH shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $98.50 price objective (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Meritage Homes in a report on Friday, December 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Meritage Homes from $117.50 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. UBS Group dropped their price target on Meritage Homes from $126.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Raymond James downgraded Meritage Homes from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Meritage Homes from $97.00 to $90.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Meritage Homes has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $106.25.

Insider Activity at Meritage Homes

In other Meritage Homes news, Chairman Steven J. Hilton acquired 11,000 shares of Meritage Homes stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $74.51 per share, with a total value of $819,610.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 811,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $60,441,915.92. The trade was a 1.37 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Alison Sasser sold 676 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total transaction of $48,692.28. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,933 shares in the company, valued at $427,353.99. This trade represents a 10.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 1,531 shares of company stock worth $111,355. 2.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Meritage Homes Company Profile

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.