B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG Makes New $7.35 Million Investment in Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new stake in Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 39,192 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,348,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in LEN. Oakworth Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Lennar in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC lifted its position in shares of Lennar by 933.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 155 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Lennar during the third quarter worth about $30,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. purchased a new stake in Lennar during the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC raised its stake in Lennar by 4,225.0% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 173 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. 81.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lennar Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of Lennar stock opened at $168.76 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 4.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm has a market cap of $45.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.62. Lennar Co. has a 52-week low of $125.17 and a 52-week high of $193.80. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $178.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $169.16.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 19th. The construction company reported $3.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.62 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $9.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.14 billion. Lennar had a return on equity of 15.47% and a net margin of 11.51%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.91 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Lennar Co. will post 14.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 24th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 9th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 9th. Lennar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.25%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jeffrey Sonnenfeld sold 17,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.13, for a total value of $3,064,775.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 23,689 shares in the company, valued at $4,148,654.57. This represents a 42.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 9.36% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com lowered Lennar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 28th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Lennar from $240.00 to $236.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Lennar from $190.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Lennar from $164.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Lennar from $154.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lennar presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $180.56.

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.