Semanteon Capital Management LP Purchases 5,642 Shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH)

Semanteon Capital Management LP lifted its position in shares of Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) by 150.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 9,399 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,642 shares during the period. Meritage Homes makes up approximately 0.8% of Semanteon Capital Management LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Semanteon Capital Management LP’s holdings in Meritage Homes were worth $1,446,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 545.5% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 213 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $92,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Meritage Homes by 235.1% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 677 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $104,000 after purchasing an additional 475 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. boosted its stake in Meritage Homes by 3,044.8% in the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 912 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $187,000 after purchasing an additional 883 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its holdings in Meritage Homes by 18.7% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 986 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $202,000 after buying an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MTH has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Meritage Homes from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $98.50 price target (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and set a $103.00 price objective on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on 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. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on Meritage Homes from $126.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $106.25.

Insider Transactions at Meritage Homes

In other news, COO Clinton Szubinski sold 595 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.29, for a total transaction of $43,607.55. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 30,547 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,238,789.63. This trade represents a 1.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Alison Sasser sold 676 shares of the business’s 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 owns 5,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $427,353.99. The trade was a 10.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,683 shares of company stock worth $122,547. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Meritage Homes Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MTH opened at $71.50 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. Meritage Homes Co. has a 12 month low of $68.93 and a 12 month high of $106.99. The company has a market capitalization of $5.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.47 and a beta of 1.92. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $75.63 and its 200 day moving average is $87.25.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $4.72 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. Research analysts predict that Meritage Homes Co. will post 9.44 EPS for the current year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.43 dividend. 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 2.41%. Meritage Homes’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.16%.

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.