Barclays Cuts Lennar (NYSE:LEN) Price Target to $135.00

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) had its price target decreased by Barclays from $181.00 to $135.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an equal weight rating on the construction company’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on LEN. Zelman & Associates upgraded Lennar from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Lennar from $180.00 to $165.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. BTIG Research downgraded shares of Lennar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Lennar from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Lennar from $240.00 to $236.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $175.94.

Lennar Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE LEN opened at $138.08 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 4.90, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.14, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.61. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $168.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $169.51. Lennar has a 12 month low of $135.21 and a 12 month high of $193.80.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 18th. The construction company reported $4.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.15 by ($0.12). Lennar had a net margin of 11.51% and a return on equity of 15.47%. The firm had revenue of $9.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.06 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.82 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Lennar will post 14.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 9th. Lennar’s payout ratio is presently 13.95%.

Insider Transactions at Lennar

In other news, Director Jeffrey Sonnenfeld sold 17,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.13, for a total value of $3,064,775.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 23,689 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,148,654.57. This represents a 42.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 9.36% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lennar

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Oakworth Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Lennar during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC lifted its position in Lennar by 933.3% during the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 155 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Lennar in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Asset Dedication LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lennar by 4,225.0% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 173 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DT Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lennar by 523.3% during the 3rd quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 187 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. 81.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.