Groupama Asset Managment Makes New Investment in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH)

Groupama Asset Managment purchased a new stake in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 500,000 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $76,910,000. Groupama Asset Managment owned approximately 0.69% of Meritage Homes as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MTH. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Meritage Homes by 235.1% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 677 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $104,000 after buying an additional 475 shares in the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its stake in Meritage Homes by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 14,589 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $2,244,000 after acquiring an additional 679 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,218,000. Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in Meritage Homes by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 47,699 shares of the construction company's stock worth $7,337,000 after purchasing an additional 4,397 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in Meritage Homes by 545.5% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 213 shares of the construction company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. 98.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Insider Activity at Meritage Homes

In other Meritage Homes news, CAO Alison Sasser sold 676 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total transaction of $48,692.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at $427,353.99. This represents a 10.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman Steven J. Hilton acquired 11,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $74.51 per share, for a total transaction of $819,610.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 811,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $60,441,915.92. This trade represents a 1.37 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold 1,683 shares of company stock worth $122,547 in the last ninety days. 2.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on MTH shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Meritage Homes from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, March 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $98.50 target price (down from $110.00) on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Friday, December 13th. UBS Group dropped their price target on Meritage Homes from $126.00 to $118.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Meritage Homes from $117.50 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Meritage Homes from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $106.25.

Meritage Homes Trading Up 3.7 %

Shares of MTH traded up $2.47 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $69.08. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,927,085 shares, compared to its average volume of 871,280. Meritage Homes Co. has a 52 week low of $65.19 and a 52 week high of $106.99. The stock has a market cap of $4.96 billion, a PE ratio of 5.28 and a beta of 1.69. The company's fifty day moving average price is $73.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $85.17. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $4.72 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.55 by $0.17. Meritage Homes had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 15.90%. On average, analysts predict that Meritage Homes Co. will post 9.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This is a positive change from Meritage Homes's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Meritage Homes's payout ratio is 13.16%.

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.