Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) CAO Sells $48,692.28 in Stock

Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $427,353.99. This represents a 10.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

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

• 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 Stock Performance

Shares of MTH stock opened at $73.84 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 1.61. The firm has a market cap of $5.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.65 and a beta of 1.88. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $80.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $90.02. Meritage Homes Co. has a one year low of $71.05 and a one year high of $106.99.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $4.72 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 research analysts predict that Meritage Homes Co. will post 9.44 EPS for the current 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 $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This is a boost from Meritage Homes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Meritage Homes’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 11.47%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on MTH shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target 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. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $98.50 target price (down from $110.00) on shares of Meritage Homes in a report on Friday, December 13th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Meritage Homes from $126.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Meritage Homes from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 11th. Finally, Raymond James lowered Meritage Homes from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $106.25.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meritage Homes

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Meritage Homes by 65.7% during the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 17,259 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,539,000 after purchasing an additional 6,843 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 32.1% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 47,546 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $9,750,000 after acquiring an additional 11,558 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in Meritage Homes by 125.2% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 509 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $104,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares during the period. CWM LLC raised its stake in Meritage Homes by 15.5% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 433 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $89,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HWG Holdings LP acquired a new stake in shares of Meritage Homes during the third quarter worth $3,163,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.