Century Communities (NYSE:CCS) Issues Earnings Results

Century Communities (NYSE:CCS) issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The construction company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.27, FiscalAI reports. Century Communities had a net margin of 3.31% and a return on equity of 6.23%. The business had revenue of $789.67 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $961.12 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.36 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 16.9% compared to the same quarter last year.

Here are the key takeaways from Century Communities’ conference call:

• The company reported a March slowdown in orders driven by the Middle East conflict, higher interest rates and fuel costs, finishing Q1 with 2,379 net new orders while noting April trends have improved sequentially.
• Sequential margin performance strengthened, with an adjusted gross margin of 19.7% (up ~140 bps) driven by lower incentives and reduced direct construction costs.
• Inventory and land posture improved — finished specs were down 16% sequentially and 31% year-over-year, the company holds nearly 60,000 owned/controlled lots plus 24,000 option lots (only $97M deposits), giving flexibility to grow deliveries >10% annually when demand returns.
• Management reduced full-year delivery guidance by ~5% to 9,500–10,500 homes and cut home sales revenue guidance to $3.5–3.8 billion because of softer order activity.
• Leadership returned capital to shareholders, repurchasing ~2% of shares in Q1 at an average price representing a 27% discount to book value and raising the quarterly dividend 10% to $0.32 per share.

Century Communities Stock Up 0.5%

Century Communities stock traded up $0.28 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $59.57. The stock had a trading volume of 61,503 shares, compared to its average volume of 272,355. The company has a market capitalization of $1.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.40 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $61.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $62.28. Century Communities has a one year low of $50.42 and a one year high of $76.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

Century Communities Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 25th were paid a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 25th. This is a positive change from Century Communities’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Century Communities’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on CCS shares. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Century Communities in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Citizens Jmp started coverage on shares of Century Communities in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. They set a “market outperform” rating and a $92.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Century Communities from $56.00 to $49.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Century Communities from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Century Communities in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $68.33.

Insider Transactions at Century Communities

In related news, Chairman Dale Francescon sold 100,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.44, for a total value of $7,251,244.00. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 561,662 shares in the company, valued at $40,686,795.28. The trade was a 15.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 13.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Century Communities

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CCS. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Century Communities by 207.6% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 609 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 411 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Century Communities by 175.5% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 730 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 465 shares in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new position in Century Communities in the 4th quarter worth about $70,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its stake in Century Communities by 1,513.3% in the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,210 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 1,135 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Century Communities by 7.8% in the 2nd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 2,405 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $134,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.54% of the company’s stock.

Century Communities Company Profile

Century Communities, Inc is a national homebuilder and land developer headquartered in Greenwood Village, Colorado. The company is engaged in the acquisition, development, construction and sale of single- and multi-family residential homes, offering a range of floor plans and design options to homebuyers. In addition to its core homebuilding activities, Century Communities provides ancillary services such as mortgage financing, title and closing services, and insurance products through its wholly owned subsidiaries, aiming to deliver a comprehensive homebuying experience.

Founded in 2009, Century Communities rapidly expanded through both organic growth and strategic land acquisitions, positioning itself in high-growth markets across the United States.