Lennar (NYSE:LEN) Hits New 12-Month Low – Here’s Why

Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN)’s stock price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $79.77 and last traded at $80.1620, with a volume of 1385853 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $80.37.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on LEN shares. Benchmark raised Lennar to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 3rd. Bank of America lowered their target price on Lennar from $84.00 to $77.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 12th. Zacks Research lowered Lennar from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. Evercore raised their price target on Lennar from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Lennar from $80.00 to $79.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and ten have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lennar has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $92.13.

Lennar Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 4.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.45 billion, a PE ratio of 12.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.39. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $85.29 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $90.27.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, June 11th. The construction company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $0.07. Lennar had a return on equity of 7.08% and a net margin of 4.93%.The business had revenue of $7.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.81 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Lennar Corporation will post 5.52 EPS for the current year.

Lennar Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 10th. Lennar’s dividend payout ratio is 31.30%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. DV Equities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lennar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Phillip James Consulting Co. bought a new position in shares of Lennar in the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Lennar in the fourth quarter worth approximately $41,000. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lennar during the second quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Finally, IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. acquired a new position in Lennar during the fourth quarter valued at $45,000. Institutional investors own 81.10% of the company’s stock.

About Lennar

Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN) is a U.S.-based homebuilder and real estate company that designs, constructs and sells residential housing. The company offers a range of product types including single-family detached homes, townhomes and condominiums, serving buyers from entry-level and first-time purchasers to move-up, active-adult and luxury segments. Lennar also develops master-planned communities and manages land acquisition and entitlement activities that support its homebuilding operations.

In addition to home construction and sales, Lennar provides a suite of ancillary services intended to streamline the purchase process and capture additional value.