Wedbush Issues Negative Estimate for Meritage Homes Earnings

Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) – Analysts at Wedbush reduced their Q1 2025 earnings estimates for shares of Meritage Homes in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, February 3rd. Wedbush analyst J. Mccanless now forecasts that the construction company will post earnings of $1.75 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $2.00. Wedbush currently has a “Neutral” rating and a $103.00 target price on the stock. The consensus estimate for Meritage Homes’ current full-year earnings is $10.52 per share. Wedbush also issued estimates for Meritage Homes’ Q4 2025 earnings at $3.21 EPS and Q4 2026 earnings at $3.76 EPS.

MTH has been the subject of a number of other reports. Raymond James cut Meritage Homes from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Meritage Homes from $126.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com cut Meritage Homes from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on Meritage Homes from $105.00 to $99.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $98.50 price objective (down from $110.00) on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Friday, December 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $107.38.

Meritage Homes Stock Performance

Meritage Homes stock opened at $77.18 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $84.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $92.08. 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 has a 12-month low of $73.05 and a 12-month high of $106.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 1.88.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $4.72 earnings per share (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%.

Meritage Homes Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th were paid a dividend of $0.375 per share. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 17th. Meritage Homes’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.47%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meritage Homes

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MTH. Hennessy Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,147,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its stake in Meritage Homes by 734.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 272,122 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $55,804,000 after acquiring an additional 239,511 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new stake in Meritage Homes in the 3rd quarter valued at $44,029,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in Meritage Homes during the 3rd quarter worth $36,365,000. Finally, FMR LLC increased its position in Meritage Homes by 75.1% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 347,227 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $71,206,000 after buying an additional 148,898 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.44% of the company’s stock.

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.