Hovnanian Enterprises Inc (NYSE:HOV) Receives $97.00 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Hovnanian Enterprises Inc (NYSE:HOV) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the four analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and two have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $74.00.

HOV has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Hovnanian Enterprises from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market underperform” rating on shares of Hovnanian Enterprises in a research note on Friday, August 21st.

Insider Activity at Hovnanian Enterprises

In other Hovnanian Enterprises news, Director J Larry Sorsby sold 1,032 shares of Hovnanian Enterprises stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.57, for a total value of $147,132.24. Following the sale, the director owned 187,416 shares in the company, valued at $26,719,899.12. The trade was a 0.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ara K. Hovnanian sold 12,880 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.78, for a total value of $1,620,046.40. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 22.67% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hovnanian Enterprises

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HOV. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Hovnanian Enterprises by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 2,340 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $228,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Hovnanian Enterprises by 1.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 9,283 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,193,000 after buying an additional 144 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in shares of Hovnanian Enterprises by 5.5% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 2,979 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $312,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG increased its position in shares of Hovnanian Enterprises by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 4,134 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $403,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Hovnanian Enterprises by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 14,847 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,647,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the period. 65.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hovnanian Enterprises Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of NYSE HOV opened at $126.20 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $739.56 million, a PE ratio of 132.85 and a beta of 1.83. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. Hovnanian Enterprises has a 12-month low of $91.52 and a 12-month high of $162.05. The company has a 50-day moving average of $131.86 and a 200 day moving average of $120.10.

Hovnanian Enterprises (NYSE:HOV) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The construction company reported ($0.70) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.56) by ($0.14). Hovnanian Enterprises had a net margin of 0.64% and a return on equity of 8.60%. The company had revenue of $705.75 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $723.50 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.99 earnings per share.

About Hovnanian Enterprises

Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc is a publicly traded homebuilding company primarily engaged in the acquisition, development and construction of residential properties. Headquartered in Red Bank, New Jersey, the company operates through a network of regional homebuilding divisions that design and deliver a range of housing solutions, including single-family detached homes, townhomes and condominiums. Hovnanian combines land development, architectural design and construction services with in-house mortgage and insurance offerings to provide a comprehensive homebuying experience.

The company markets its communities under several branded product lines tailored to different buyer segments and price points.