42,460 Shares in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) Purchased by Raymond James Financial Inc.

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 42,460 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $6,531,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.06% of Meritage Homes at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MTH. Allworth Financial LP increased 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 acquiring an additional 180 shares during 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. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 235.1% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 677 shares of the construction company's stock worth $104,000 after buying an additional 475 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. boosted its stake in Meritage Homes by 3,044.8% during the 3rd 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Meritage Homes in the 3rd quarter valued at about $230,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.44% of the company's stock.

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Insider Activity

In other Meritage Homes news, Chairman Steven J. Hilton acquired 11,000 shares of Meritage Homes stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $74.51 per share, for a total transaction of $819,610.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 811,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $60,441,915.92. This trade represents a 1.37 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available 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 stock was 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 owns 5,933 shares in the company, valued at $427,353.99. The trade was a 10.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,683 shares of company stock worth $122,547. 2.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Meritage Homes Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MTH traded up $0.33 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $73.61. 245,764 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 825,468. The company has a market cap of $5.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 1.92. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $75.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $86.79. Meritage Homes Co. has a 52 week low of $68.93 and a 52 week high of $106.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.75.

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

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This is a positive change from Meritage Homes's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Meritage Homes's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wedbush reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $103.00 price objective on shares of Meritage Homes in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Meritage Homes from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Meritage Homes from $126.00 to $118.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Meritage Homes from $97.00 to $90.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Meritage Homes from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Meritage Homes has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $106.25.

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.