Virtu Financial LLC Invests $850,000 in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH)

Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 5,528 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $850,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp boosted its position in Meritage Homes by 4.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,773,609 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $363,714,000 after acquiring an additional 74,422 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 489,035 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $100,286,000 after purchasing an additional 5,732 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in Meritage Homes by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 405,854 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $62,429,000 after purchasing an additional 3,219 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Meritage Homes by 75.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 347,227 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $71,206,000 after purchasing an additional 148,898 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Meritage Homes by 2,199.9% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 305,605 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $47,008,000 after buying an additional 292,317 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.44% of the company’s stock.

Meritage Homes Stock Performance

NYSE:MTH opened at $73.37 on Tuesday. Meritage Homes Co. has a twelve month low of $68.93 and a twelve month high of $106.99. 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 market cap of $5.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.61 and a beta of 1.92. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $75.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $86.79.

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

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This is a boost from Meritage Homes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Meritage Homes’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Steven J. Hilton acquired 11,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $74.51 per share, for a total transaction of $819,610.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chairman now owns 811,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $60,441,915.92. This represents a 1.37 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Alison Sasser sold 676 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total value of $48,692.28. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $427,353.99. This represents a 10.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,683 shares of company stock valued at $122,547. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MTH has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Meritage Homes from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Meritage Homes from $117.50 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Meritage Homes from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on Meritage Homes from $97.00 to $90.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $103.00 price objective on shares of Meritage Homes in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $106.25.

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.