Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twenty brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $171.50.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Lennar from $180.00 to $165.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Zelman & Associates raised Lennar from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Lennar from $210.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 20th. UBS Group decreased their price target on Lennar from $205.00 to $192.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Lennar from $192.00 to $173.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 13th.

Lennar Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of Lennar stock opened at $141.55 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 4.71, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $152.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $167.32. The stock has a market cap of $38.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.87, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.66. Lennar has a 12-month low of $128.41 and a 12-month high of $193.80.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, December 18th. The construction company reported $4.03 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.15 by ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $9.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.06 billion. Lennar had a return on equity of 13.93% and a net margin of 11.10%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.82 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Lennar will post 13.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lennar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 29th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 29th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. Lennar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.95%.

Insider Activity at Lennar

In other Lennar news, Director Jeffrey Sonnenfeld sold 17,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.13, for a total transaction of $3,064,775.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 23,689 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,148,654.57. This trade represents a 42.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 9.36% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Lennar

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lennar by 23,048.0% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 150,462 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $28,209,000 after purchasing an additional 149,812 shares during the period. Smead Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Lennar by 3.5% in the third quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,666,905 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $499,991,000 after buying an additional 89,896 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC lifted its position in Lennar by 147.6% during the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 69,226 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $12,978,000 after buying an additional 41,264 shares in the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Lennar by 101.2% during the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,673 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,626,000 after buying an additional 4,363 shares during the period. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Lennar by 8.7% in the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 101,463 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $19,022,000 after acquiring an additional 8,092 shares in the last quarter. 81.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lennar Company Profile

Lennar Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a homebuilder primarily under the Lennar brand in the United States. It operates through Homebuilding East, Homebuilding Central, Homebuilding Texas, Homebuilding West, Financial Services, Multifamily, and Lennar Other segments. The company’s homebuilding operations include the construction and sale of single-family attached and detached homes, as well as the purchase, development, and sale of residential land; and development, construction, and management of multifamily rental properties.