Lennar (NYSE:LEN) Hits New 1-Year Low After Earnings Miss

Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday following a dissappointing earnings announcement. The company traded as low as $135.21 and last traded at $140.29, with a volume of 1040813 shares. The stock had previously closed at $145.93.

The construction company reported $4.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.15 by ($0.12). Lennar had a return on equity of 15.47% and a net margin of 11.51%. The firm had revenue of $9.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.82 EPS. Lennar’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Lennar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 9th. Lennar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Lennar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Lennar from $192.00 to $173.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Lennar from $240.00 to $236.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. JMP Securities raised their price objective on Lennar from $170.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Zelman & Associates raised Lennar from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lennar has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $182.88.

Insider Transactions at Lennar

In related news, Director Jeffrey Sonnenfeld sold 17,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.13, for a total value of $3,064,775.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 23,689 shares in the company, valued at $4,148,654.57. The trade was a 42.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 9.36% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Lennar by 23,048.0% in the third 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 in the last quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Lennar by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,666,905 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $499,991,000 after buying an additional 89,896 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Lennar by 101.2% during the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,673 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,626,000 after acquiring an additional 4,363 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Lennar by 8.7% during 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. Finally, Soditic Asset Management LLP grew its holdings in Lennar by 143.1% in the third quarter. Soditic Asset Management LLP now owns 29,290 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $5,491,000 after purchasing an additional 17,240 shares during the period. 81.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lennar Trading Down 3.5 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $38.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.61. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $170.57 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $169.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 4.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

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.