Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) Stock Rating Upgraded by Seaport Res Ptn

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Seaport Res Ptn from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other analysts also recently commented on MTH. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $98.50 price objective (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Friday, December 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Meritage Homes from $117.50 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Meritage Homes from $126.00 to $118.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com raised shares of Meritage Homes from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Raymond James cut shares of Meritage Homes from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Meritage Homes has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $106.25.

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Meritage Homes Trading Down 0.4 %

MTH traded down $0.31 during trading on Thursday, reaching $74.49. 902,983 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 985,265. The company's fifty day moving average price is $79.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $88.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 1.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.35 billion, a PE ratio of 5.70 and a beta of 1.92. Meritage Homes has a fifty-two week low of $69.26 and a fifty-two week high of $106.99.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $4.72 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.55 by $0.17. Meritage Homes had a return on equity of 15.90% and a net margin of 12.29%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Meritage Homes will post 9.44 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Steven J. Hilton acquired 11,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $74.51 per share, for a total transaction of $819,610.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 811,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $60,441,915.92. The trade was a 1.37 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Alison Sasser sold 676 shares of the company'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 value of $48,692.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,933 shares in the company, valued at $427,353.99. The trade was a 10.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 1,683 shares of company stock valued at $122,547. 2.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Meritage Homes

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Meritage Homes by 53.6% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 172 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Pinnacle Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 545.5% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 213 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meritage Homes in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $92,000. Finally, Archer Investment Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes by 42.1% during the 3rd quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 675 shares of the construction company's stock worth $138,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.44% of the company's stock.

Meritage Homes Company 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.