Van ECK Associates Corp Trims Stake in Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN)

Van ECK Associates Corp cut its stake in shares of Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 39,652 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 898 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Lennar were worth $5,943,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in Lennar by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 4,448 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $663,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Lakewood Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Lennar by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Lakewood Asset Management LLC now owns 9,385 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,407,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lennar by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 4,870 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $730,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Lennar by 5.7% in the 2nd quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,381 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $207,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quotient Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Lennar by 5.0% in the second quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,540 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $231,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.10% of the company’s stock.

Lennar Stock Down 2.0 %

Shares of LEN opened at $178.47 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 4.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The business has a fifty day moving average of $167.17 and a 200 day moving average of $161.49. The company has a market cap of $49.01 billion, a PE ratio of 12.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.60. Lennar Co. has a 52-week low of $102.90 and a 52-week high of $186.60.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last released its earnings results on Monday, June 17th. The construction company reported $3.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.20 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $8.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.57 billion. Lennar had a net margin of 11.58% and a return on equity of 15.93%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Lennar Co. will post 14.16 EPS for the current year.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 5th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 5th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.12%. Lennar’s dividend payout ratio is 13.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on LEN. Argus lifted their target price on Lennar from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Lennar from $157.00 to $154.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 20th. Raymond James cut shares of Lennar from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Lennar from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Lennar from $237.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lennar currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $169.13.

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.