Lennar (NYSE:LEN) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.44 EPS

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The construction company reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.44, Zacks reports. Lennar had a return on equity of 13.93% and a net margin of 11.10%. The business had revenue of $7.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.44 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.57 EPS. Lennar’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

Lennar Trading Down 4.1 %

Shares of NYSE:LEN opened at $115.09 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $30.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.03, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 4.71 and a quick ratio of 1.06. Lennar has a 1 year low of $111.26 and a 1 year high of $187.61. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $126.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $153.48.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 29th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 29th. Lennar’s payout ratio is currently 13.95%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in Lennar stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) by 27.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,727 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 377 shares during the quarter. Brighton Jones LLC’s holdings in Lennar were worth $236,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. 81.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered Lennar from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $152.00 to $141.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Lennar from $190.00 to $162.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Citigroup cut their price objective on Lennar from $196.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Lennar from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Lennar from $192.00 to $173.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $164.53.

About Lennar

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.