Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Tuesday.

MTH has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Meritage Homes from $97.00 to $90.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $98.50 target price (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Friday, December 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Meritage Homes from $117.50 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $103.00 price target on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Meritage Homes from $126.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $106.25.

Meritage Homes Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MTH traded up $1.22 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $71.92. The stock had a trading volume of 1,108,632 shares, compared to its average volume of 955,298. Meritage Homes has a 52 week low of $69.26 and a 52 week high of $106.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.50 and a beta of 1.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $79.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $89.23.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $4.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.55 by $0.17. Meritage Homes had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 15.90%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Meritage Homes will post 9.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Clinton Szubinski sold 595 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.29, for a total value of $43,607.55. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 30,547 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,238,789.63. The trade was a 1.91 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Chairman Steven J. Hilton bought 11,000 shares of Meritage Homes stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $74.51 per share, for a total transaction of $819,610.00. Following the purchase, the chairman now directly owns 811,192 shares in the company, valued at $60,441,915.92. This represents a 1.37 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,683 shares of company stock worth $122,547. Corporate insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meritage Homes

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pinnacle Holdings LLC acquired a new position in Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in Meritage Homes by 545.5% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 213 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in Meritage Homes by 53.6% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 172 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter worth about $92,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Meritage Homes by 235.1% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 677 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $104,000 after buying an additional 475 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.44% of the company’s stock.

About Meritage Homes

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.