Hovnanian Enterprises (NYSE:HOV) Shares Pass Above 200 Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Hovnanian Enterprises Inc (NYSE:HOV) crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $115.38 and traded as high as $127.27. Hovnanian Enterprises shares last traded at $125.5980, with a volume of 102,483 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HOV has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Hovnanian Enterprises from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Citizens Jmp initiated coverage on shares of Hovnanian Enterprises in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. They issued a “market underperform” rating and a $74.00 price target for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Hovnanian Enterprises presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $97.00.

Hovnanian Enterprises Trading Up 1.3%

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $117.68 and a 200 day moving average of $115.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 0.40. The firm has a market cap of $746.58 million, a P/E ratio of 35.00 and a beta of 1.81.

Hovnanian Enterprises (NYSE:HOV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The construction company reported ($0.46) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.04) by $1.58. The firm had revenue of $667.65 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $626.40 million. Hovnanian Enterprises had a return on equity of 11.23% and a net margin of 1.25%.

Insider Activity at Hovnanian Enterprises

In other Hovnanian Enterprises news, Director J Larry Sorsby sold 1,032 shares of Hovnanian Enterprises stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.57, for a total transaction of $147,132.24. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 187,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,719,899.12. This trade represents a 0.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Ara K. Hovnanian sold 12,880 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.78, for a total transaction of $1,620,046.40. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 22.67% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hovnanian Enterprises

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HOV. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in Hovnanian Enterprises by 72.1% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 432 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its position in Hovnanian Enterprises by 614.1% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 557 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 479 shares during the period. State of Wyoming bought a new position in shares of Hovnanian Enterprises during the first quarter valued at about $62,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Hovnanian Enterprises during the fourth quarter valued at about $117,000. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hovnanian Enterprises by 38.1% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,369 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $134,000 after buying an additional 378 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 65.40% of the company’s stock.

Hovnanian Enterprises Company Profile

Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc is a publicly traded homebuilding company primarily engaged in the acquisition, development and construction of residential properties. Headquartered in Red Bank, New Jersey, the company operates through a network of regional homebuilding divisions that design and deliver a range of housing solutions, including single-family detached homes, townhomes and condominiums. Hovnanian combines land development, architectural design and construction services with in-house mortgage and insurance offerings to provide a comprehensive homebuying experience.

The company markets its communities under several branded product lines tailored to different buyer segments and price points.