Lennar (NYSE:LEN) Lowered to Market Perform Rating by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut shares of Lennar (NYSE:LEN) from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a report released on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has $141.00 target price on the construction company’s stock, down from their prior target price of $152.00.

LEN has been the subject of several other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Lennar from $192.00 to $173.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. BTIG Research cut Lennar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $164.00 price target on shares of Lennar in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Seaport Res Ptn raised Lennar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Lennar from $145.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $163.19.

Lennar Stock Performance

LEN opened at $121.41 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 4.71, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. Lennar has a twelve month low of $116.67 and a twelve month high of $187.61. The business’s 50 day moving average is $128.59 and its 200-day moving average is $156.67. The stock has a market cap of $32.24 billion, a PE ratio of 8.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.69.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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). The company had revenue of $9.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.06 billion. Lennar had a net margin of 11.10% and a return on equity of 13.93%. Lennar’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.82 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Lennar will post 12.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 29th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 29th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.65%. Lennar’s dividend payout ratio is 13.95%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lennar

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Lennar in the third quarter valued at about $532,000. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Lennar in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $608,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Lennar in the third quarter worth approximately $52,000. Versor Investments LP grew its position in Lennar by 51.1% in the third quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 4,200 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $787,000 after acquiring an additional 1,421 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP bought a new stake in Lennar in the third quarter worth approximately $2,134,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.10% of the company’s stock.

Lennar Company Profile

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.