Barclays Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Lennar (NYSE:LEN) Stock Price

Lennar (NYSE:LEN - Free Report) had its target price reduced by Barclays from $121.00 to $110.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the construction company's stock.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Lennar from $190.00 to $162.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Lennar from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. BTIG Research cut Lennar from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Wolfe Research lowered Lennar from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $158.00 price objective on shares of Lennar in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lennar presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $151.07.

Remove Ads

Lennar Stock Down 3.5 %

NYSE LEN opened at $113.83 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 4.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. Lennar has a 52 week low of $111.26 and a 52 week high of $187.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.94, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a fifty day moving average of $124.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $151.33.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 20th. The construction company reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.70 by $0.44. Lennar had a net margin of 11.10% and a return on equity of 13.93%. The company had revenue of $7.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.57 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Lennar will post 12.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Lennar Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 29th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 29th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.76%. Lennar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.57%.

Institutional Trading of Lennar

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in LEN. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Lennar during the fourth quarter worth about $218,533,000. Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new position in shares of Lennar during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $115,229,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Lennar by 22.0% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,271,319 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $446,110,000 after purchasing an additional 589,553 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Lennar by 18.9% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,239,488 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $441,769,000 after purchasing an additional 515,378 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in shares of Lennar by 21.4% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,250,626 shares of the construction company's stock worth $308,696,000 after acquiring an additional 397,492 shares during the period. 81.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.