UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Has $4.96 Million Holdings in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH)

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd reduced its position in shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) by 11.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 32,224 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 4,100 shares during the quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd's holdings in Meritage Homes were worth $4,957,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MTH. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in Meritage Homes by 545.5% in 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 stake in shares of Meritage Homes in the fourth quarter worth $92,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of 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 during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. boosted its position in Meritage Homes by 3,044.8% in the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 912 shares of the construction company's stock worth $187,000 after purchasing an additional 883 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Meritage Homes in the 3rd quarter valued at about $230,000. 98.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Meritage Homes

In other news, Chairman Steven J. Hilton purchased 11,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $74.51 per share, with a total value of $819,610.00. Following the purchase, the chairman now directly owns 811,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $60,441,915.92. This represents a 1.37 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Alison Sasser sold 676 shares of Meritage Homes stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total value of $48,692.28. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,933 shares in the company, valued at $427,353.99. This represents a 10.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,683 shares of company stock valued at $122,547 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 2.00% of the company's stock.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on MTH shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Meritage Homes from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, March 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Meritage Homes from $117.50 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $98.50 price target (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Seaport Res Ptn raised Meritage Homes from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Meritage Homes from $97.00 to $90.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 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 data from MarketBeat.com, Meritage Homes has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $106.25.

Meritage Homes Stock Performance

NYSE:MTH traded down $0.05 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $71.04. 92,798 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 858,887. 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 Co. has a 1-year low of $68.71 and a 1-year high of $106.99. The company has a 50-day moving average of $74.51 and a 200 day moving average of $85.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.43 and a beta of 1.92.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $4.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.55 by $0.17. Meritage Homes had a return on equity of 15.90% and a net margin of 12.29%. Research analysts anticipate 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 was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.42%. This is a boost from Meritage Homes's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Meritage Homes's payout ratio is presently 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.