Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Trims Position in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans reduced its stake in shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) by 26.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 63,048 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 22,385 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned approximately 0.09% of Meritage Homes worth $9,698,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MTH. State Street Corp raised its position in Meritage Homes by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,773,609 shares of the construction company's stock worth $363,714,000 after buying an additional 74,422 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes by 1.2% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 489,035 shares of the construction company's stock worth $100,286,000 after purchasing an additional 5,732 shares during the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP lifted its position in Meritage Homes by 26.9% during the third quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 483,159 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $99,081,000 after purchasing an additional 102,502 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Meritage Homes by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 405,854 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $62,429,000 after purchasing an additional 3,219 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Meritage Homes by 75.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 347,227 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $71,206,000 after purchasing an additional 148,898 shares during the last quarter. 98.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Remove Ads

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Clinton Szubinski sold 595 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.29, for a total transaction of $43,607.55. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 30,547 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,238,789.63. This trade represents a 1.91 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Alison Sasser sold 676 shares of the business'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 transaction of $48,692.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,933 shares in the company, valued at $427,353.99. This trade represents a 10.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 1,683 shares of company stock worth $122,547. 2.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com lowered Meritage Homes from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday. Wedbush reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $103.00 price target on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on Meritage Homes from $117.50 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Meritage Homes from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $106.25.

Meritage Homes Price Performance

Shares of MTH stock traded down $0.32 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $72.96. 824,475 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 826,908. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $75.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $86.64. Meritage Homes Co. has a fifty-two week low of $68.93 and a fifty-two week high of $106.99. The firm has a market cap of $5.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.58 and a beta of 1.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

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

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

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