Hsbc Holdings PLC Boosts Stake in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH)

Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) by 408.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 29,364 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 23,592 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in Meritage Homes were worth $4,449,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Pinnacle Holdings LLC bought a new position in Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in Meritage Homes by 545.5% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 213 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Meritage Homes in the fourth quarter worth approximately $92,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in Meritage Homes by 235.1% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 677 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $104,000 after purchasing an additional 475 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in Meritage Homes by 38.9% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,122 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $173,000 after buying an additional 314 shares during the last quarter. 98.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Steven J. Hilton bought 11,000 shares of Meritage Homes stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $74.51 per share, with a total value of $819,610.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chairman now owns 811,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $60,441,915.92. This trade represents a 1.37 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Alison Sasser sold 676 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total value of $48,692.28. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $427,353.99. The trade was a 10.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,683 shares of company stock worth $122,547 over the last quarter. Insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MTH has been the topic of a number of research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Meritage Homes from $90.00 to $77.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $103.00 price target on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. UBS Group set a $107.00 price objective on shares of Meritage Homes in a report on Friday. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Meritage Homes from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of Meritage Homes from $117.50 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $103.25.

Meritage Homes Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of MTH stock opened at $66.92 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.12 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.75. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $69.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $80.64. Meritage Homes Co. has a one year low of $59.27 and a one year high of $106.99.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.71 by ($0.02). Meritage Homes had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 15.90%. The business had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $5.06 earnings per share. Meritage Homes’s revenue was down 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Meritage Homes Co. will post 9.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This is a positive change from Meritage Homes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.57%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. Meritage Homes’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.06%.

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.