Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) CAO Alison Sasser Sells 152 Shares

Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) CAO Alison Sasser sold 152 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.63, for a total value of $11,191.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,330 shares in the company, valued at $466,077.90. This represents a 2.34 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Alison Sasser also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, February 19th, Alison Sasser sold 676 shares of Meritage Homes stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total value of $48,692.28.
• On Wednesday, February 12th, Alison Sasser sold 260 shares of Meritage Homes stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.29, for a total value of $19,055.40.

Meritage Homes Trading Down 2.1 %

Meritage Homes stock opened at $72.26 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $80.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $89.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Meritage Homes Co. has a 12 month low of $71.05 and a 12 month high of $106.99. The stock has a market cap of $5.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.53 and a beta of 1.88.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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, sell-side analysts forecast that Meritage Homes Co. will post 9.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 positive change from Meritage Homes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.38%. Meritage Homes’s payout ratio is currently 13.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on MTH. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $98.50 price objective (down from $110.00) on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com cut shares of Meritage Homes from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 11th. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $103.00 price objective on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $106.25.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pinnacle Holdings LLC acquired a new position in Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter worth $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 acquiring an additional 180 shares during 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 acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its position in Meritage Homes by 15.5% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 433 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $89,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter worth $92,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.44% of the company’s stock.

Meritage Homes Company 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.