Toll Brothers (NYSE:TOL) Cut to “Sell” at StockNews.com

Toll Brothers (NYSE:TOL) was downgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Toll Brothers from $156.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Toll Brothers from $115.00 to $101.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $150.00 price objective (down from $166.00) on shares of Toll Brothers in a report on Friday, December 13th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on Toll Brothers from $142.00 to $139.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Toll Brothers from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Toll Brothers has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $147.57.

Toll Brothers Price Performance

Shares of TOL traded down $3.24 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $108.40. 2,306,902 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,405,680. The company has a market cap of $10.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.76. Toll Brothers has a 1 year low of $107.86 and a 1 year high of $169.52. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $126.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $140.80. The company has a current ratio of 4.65, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Toll Brothers (NYSE:TOL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The construction company reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.99 by ($0.24). Toll Brothers had a return on equity of 18.32% and a net margin of 14.03%. The business had revenue of $1.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.91 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Toll Brothers will post 13.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Toll Brothers

In related news, Director Christine Garvey sold 420 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.58, for a total value of $46,443.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,458,107.88. This represents a 3.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Paul E. Shapiro sold 3,837 shares of Toll Brothers stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.14, for a total value of $514,695.18. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 119,937 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,088,349.18. The trade was a 3.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,622 shares of company stock valued at $1,993,880. Company insiders own 1.54% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Toll Brothers

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TOL. Fiduciary Alliance LLC bought a new position in shares of Toll Brothers in the 4th quarter worth about $1,117,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Toll Brothers by 5.4% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 180,023 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $27,659,000 after purchasing an additional 9,195 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Toll Brothers in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $12,506,000. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Toll Brothers by 66.5% in the 3rd quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC now owns 35,295 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $5,453,000 after buying an additional 14,092 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Toll Brothers by 4,894.1% during the 3rd quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,396 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $525,000 after buying an additional 3,328 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.76% of the company’s stock.

Toll Brothers Company Profile

Toll Brothers, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, builds, markets, sells, and arranges finance for a range of detached and attached homes in luxury residential communities in the United States. It designs, builds, markets, and sells condominiums through Toll Brothers City Living. The company also develops a range of single-story living and first-floor primary bedroom suite home designs, as well as communities with recreational amenities, such as golf courses, marinas, pool complexes, country clubs, and fitness and recreation centers; and develops, operates, and rents apartments.