DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale Sells 234 Shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH)

DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale decreased its stake in shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) by 8.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,658 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 234 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale’s holdings in Meritage Homes were worth $430,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MTH. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Meritage Homes by 157.6% during the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 237 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 1,033.3% during the second quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 272 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Meritage Homes during the fourth quarter worth about $47,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management bought a new stake in Meritage Homes in the 2nd quarter worth about $64,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Meritage Homes by 16.8% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 676 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $119,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Meritage Homes

In related news, CFO Hilla Sferruzza sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.00, for a total transaction of $512,500.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 44,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,136,850. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Meritage Homes news, CFO Hilla Sferruzza sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.00, for a total value of $512,500.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 44,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,136,850. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Phillippe Lord sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.35, for a total value of $2,003,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 90,266 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,084,793.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 15,500 shares of company stock valued at $3,111,080. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Meritage Homes Price Performance

MTH opened at $203.33 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.67 and a beta of 1.81. The company has a quick ratio of 1.93, a current ratio of 1.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $191.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $174.98. Meritage Homes Co. has a twelve month low of $109.23 and a twelve month high of $213.98.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The construction company reported $6.31 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.17 by $1.14. Meritage Homes had a return on equity of 17.99% and a net margin of 12.98%. The firm had revenue of $1.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.57 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $5.02 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Meritage Homes Co. will post 21.09 EPS for the current year.

Meritage Homes Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. Meritage Homes’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James upped their target price on Meritage Homes from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. StockNews.com lowered Meritage Homes from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Meritage Homes from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $230.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Meritage Homes from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Meritage Homes from $219.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $208.00.

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.