Lennar (NYSE:LEN) Shares Gap Down – Time to Sell?

Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) shares gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $120.07, but opened at $112.97. Lennar shares last traded at $112.56, with a volume of 1,569,496 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on LEN. BTIG Research downgraded Lennar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on Lennar from $190.00 to $162.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Lennar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded Lennar from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $152.00 to $141.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their target price on Lennar from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $164.53.

Lennar Stock Down 4.5 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 4.71 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.45 billion, a PE ratio of 7.97, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $126.38 and a 200-day moving average price of $153.95.

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

Lennar Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 29th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, January 29th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.74%. Lennar’s payout ratio is 13.95%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lennar

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in Lennar by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 204,431 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $27,878,000 after purchasing an additional 1,515 shares during the period. Centaurus Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Lennar by 7.2% in the fourth quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 3,149 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $429,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. Cim LLC boosted its holdings in Lennar by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Cim LLC now owns 29,702 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,050,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Lennar in the fourth quarter worth $47,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in Lennar in the fourth quarter worth $17,586,000. 81.10% of the stock is 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.