Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) Short Interest Up 16.0% in February

Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) saw a significant increase in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 8,970,000 shares, an increase of 16.0% from the February 13th total of 7,730,000 shares. Approximately 4.0% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 3,260,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.8 days.

Lennar Stock Performance

NYSE LEN opened at $119.90 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $126.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $153.95. Lennar has a twelve month low of $115.61 and a twelve month high of $187.61. The company has a market capitalization of $31.84 billion, a PE ratio of 8.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a current ratio of 4.71, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The construction company reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.44. The firm had revenue of $7.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.44 billion. Lennar had a return on equity of 13.93% and a net margin of 11.10%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.57 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Lennar will post 12.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 29th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 29th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.67%. Lennar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on LEN shares. Citigroup decreased their target price on Lennar from $196.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $158.00 target price on shares of Lennar in a research report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Lennar from $130.00 to $125.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Lennar from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Lennar from $190.00 to $162.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $164.53.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lennar

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of LEN. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lennar in the 4th quarter worth about $218,533,000. Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Lennar in the third quarter valued at about $115,229,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lennar by 22.0% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,271,319 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $446,110,000 after buying an additional 589,553 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Lennar by 18.9% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,239,488 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $441,769,000 after buying an additional 515,378 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of Lennar by 21.4% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,250,626 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $308,696,000 after buying an additional 397,492 shares in the last quarter. 81.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lennar Company Profile

Lennar Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a homebuilder primarily under the Lennar brand in the United States. It operates through Homebuilding East, Homebuilding Central, Homebuilding Texas, Homebuilding West, Financial Services, Multifamily, and Lennar Other segments. The company’s homebuilding operations include the construction and sale of single-family attached and detached homes, as well as the purchase, development, and sale of residential land; and development, construction, and management of multifamily rental properties.