Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) has earned an average rating of “Hold” from the nineteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eleven have assigned a hold recommendation and six have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $175.94.

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Lennar from $240.00 to $236.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $164.00 target price on shares of Lennar in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target 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. Zelman & Associates raised Lennar from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Lennar from $160.00 to $130.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday.

Lennar Trading Down 0.2 %

Lennar stock opened at $138.08 on Wednesday. Lennar has a 52 week low of $135.21 and a 52 week high of $193.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 4.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $168.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $169.51.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 18th. The construction company reported $4.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.15 by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $9.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.06 billion. Lennar had a net margin of 11.51% and a return on equity of 15.47%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $4.82 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Lennar will post 14.11 EPS for the current year.

Lennar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 24th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 9th. Lennar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lennar news, Director Jeffrey Sonnenfeld sold 17,500 shares of Lennar stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.13, for a total value of $3,064,775.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 23,689 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,148,654.57. The trade was a 42.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 9.36% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lennar

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LEN. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in Lennar by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 5,903,555 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,106,798,000 after purchasing an additional 73,638 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Lennar by 15.1% in the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,021,856 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $452,886,000 after buying an additional 396,951 shares during the period. Smead Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Lennar by 3.5% during 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 acquiring an additional 89,896 shares during the period. D1 Capital Partners L.P. raised its holdings in Lennar by 428.9% in the 2nd quarter. D1 Capital Partners L.P. now owns 2,420,000 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $362,685,000 after acquiring an additional 1,962,447 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in shares of Lennar by 20.9% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,015,641 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $302,084,000 after purchasing an additional 348,553 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.10% of the company’s stock.

About Lennar

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.