JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has Lowered Expectations for Lennar (NYSE:LEN) Stock Price

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) had its target price lowered by equities research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $192.00 to $173.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the construction company’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target indicates a potential upside of 12.05% from the stock’s current price.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Lennar from $164.00 to $196.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. JMP Securities increased their price target on Lennar from $170.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Lennar from $190.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Lennar from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Zelman & Associates raised shares of Lennar from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $183.76.

Lennar Stock Performance

NYSE LEN opened at $154.39 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 4.90 and a quick ratio of 0.98. Lennar has a 1-year low of $140.65 and a 1-year high of $193.80. The company has a market cap of $41.88 billion, a PE ratio of 10.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.61. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $172.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $169.96.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, September 19th. The construction company reported $3.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.62 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $9.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.14 billion. Lennar had a net margin of 11.51% and a return on equity of 15.47%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.91 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Lennar will post 14.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jeffrey Sonnenfeld sold 17,500 shares of Lennar stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 23,689 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,148,654.57. The trade was a 42.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 9.36% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lennar

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LEN. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of 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 valued at $28,209,000 after acquiring an additional 149,812 shares in the last quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Lennar by 3.5% during the third 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 stake in Lennar by 101.2% in the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,673 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,626,000 after acquiring an additional 4,363 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Lennar by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 101,463 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $19,022,000 after purchasing an additional 8,092 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Soditic Asset Management LLP raised its holdings in shares of Lennar by 143.1% in the 3rd quarter. Soditic Asset Management LLP now owns 29,290 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $5,491,000 after purchasing an additional 17,240 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.