Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Sells 39,782 Shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP decreased its position in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) by 2.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,509,876 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 39,782 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 2.09% of Meritage Homes worth $232,250,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 18.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 211,043 shares of the construction company's stock worth $43,279,000 after purchasing an additional 32,810 shares in the last quarter. Castellan Group lifted its stake in Meritage Homes by 5.0% in the third quarter. Castellan Group now owns 31,981 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $6,558,000 after acquiring an additional 1,516 shares during the last quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC bought a new position in shares of Meritage Homes in the 3rd quarter valued at about $16,056,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Meritage Homes by 9.4% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 244,776 shares of the construction company's stock worth $50,196,000 after purchasing an additional 21,092 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Meritage Homes by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,763 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,963,000 after purchasing an additional 534 shares during the period. 98.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on MTH. Wedbush reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $103.00 target price on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Meritage Homes from $97.00 to $90.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of Meritage Homes from $117.50 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Meritage Homes from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on Meritage Homes from $126.00 to $118.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $106.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Alison Sasser sold 676 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total value of $48,692.28. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $427,353.99. This trade represents a 10.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Steven J. Hilton acquired 11,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 purchase, the chairman now owns 811,192 shares in the company, valued at $60,441,915.92. The trade was a 1.37 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold 1,683 shares of company stock worth $122,547 over the last three months. Insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Meritage Homes Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MTH traded up $0.70 during trading on Thursday, reaching $68.91. 1,692,679 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 889,956. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.95 billion, a PE ratio of 5.27 and a beta of 1.69. Meritage Homes Co. has a 52 week low of $59.27 and a 52 week high of $106.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company's 50 day moving average is $70.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $81.37.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.71 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. Meritage Homes had a return on equity of 15.90% and a net margin of 12.29%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Meritage Homes Co. will post 9.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This is an increase from Meritage Homes's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Meritage Homes's payout ratio is currently 13.16%.

Meritage Homes 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.