Federated Hermes Inc. Decreases Position in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH)

Federated Hermes Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) by 68.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,944 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 21,373 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Meritage Homes were worth $1,609,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Meritage Homes by 26.6% during the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,823 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,104,000 after purchasing an additional 1,433 shares during the period. Vest Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 25.6% during the second quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 6,776 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,097,000 after buying an additional 1,380 shares in the last quarter. Qsemble Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Meritage Homes during the second quarter worth about $645,000. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. raised its holdings in Meritage Homes by 4.1% in the second quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 62,188 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $10,065,000 after acquiring an additional 2,427 shares in the last quarter. Finally, VitalStone Financial LLC purchased a new position in Meritage Homes in the second quarter worth approximately $196,000. 98.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meritage Homes

In other news, EVP Javier Feliciano sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.36, for a total transaction of $595,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,307 shares in the company, valued at $2,837,936.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, EVP Javier Feliciano sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.36, for a total value of $595,080.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,307 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,837,936.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Hilla Sferruzza sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.00, for a total value of $512,500.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 44,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,136,850. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 15,500 shares of company stock worth $3,111,080. 2.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Meritage Homes Stock Down 4.8 %

Meritage Homes stock opened at $203.33 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.48 and a beta of 1.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.93 and a current ratio of 1.93. Meritage Homes Co. has a fifty-two week low of $109.23 and a fifty-two week high of $213.98. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $191.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $174.98.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The construction company reported $6.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.17 by $1.14. The company had revenue of $1.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.57 billion. Meritage Homes had a return on equity of 17.99% and a net margin of 12.98%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $5.02 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Meritage Homes Co. will post 21.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Meritage Homes Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. Meritage Homes’s payout ratio is currently 13.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Wedbush increased their price objective on shares of Meritage Homes from $148.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. StockNews.com cut Meritage Homes from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Wolfe Research raised Meritage Homes from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $230.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Meritage Homes from $219.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Meritage Homes from $173.00 to $197.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $208.00.

Meritage Homes Profile

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.