Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) Shares Sold by Summit Global Investments

Summit Global Investments reduced its stake in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) by 56.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,305 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 4,200 shares during the period. Summit Global Investments' holdings in Meritage Homes were worth $508,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 545.5% during the fourth 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. Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Meritage Homes in the 4th quarter worth $92,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Meritage Homes by 235.1% in 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 during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Meritage Homes by 3,044.8% during the third quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 912 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $187,000 after acquiring an additional 883 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 41.9% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,423 shares of the construction company's stock worth $219,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares during the last quarter. 98.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Meritage Homes Stock Performance

Meritage Homes stock traded down $0.15 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $72.74. The company's stock had a trading volume of 405,128 shares, compared to its average volume of 825,967. 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 Co. has a twelve month low of $68.93 and a twelve month high of $106.99. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $75.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $86.44. The firm has a market cap of $5.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.56 and a beta of 1.92.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $4.72 earnings per share (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%. Sell-side analysts predict that Meritage Homes Co. will post 9.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.43 dividend. This is an increase from Meritage Homes's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Meritage Homes's payout ratio is presently 13.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $98.50 price target (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Meritage Homes in a report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com lowered Meritage Homes from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Meritage Homes from $97.00 to $90.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Wedbush restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $103.00 price target on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Meritage Homes from $126.00 to $118.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One research 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 data from MarketBeat.com, Meritage Homes currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $106.25.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Steven J. Hilton acquired 11,000 shares of Meritage Homes stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was acquired 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 $60,441,915.92. This trade represents a 1.37 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Clinton Szubinski sold 595 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.29, for a total value of $43,607.55. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 30,547 shares in the company, valued at $2,238,789.63. This represents a 1.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,683 shares of company stock valued at $122,547. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.