Lennar (NYSE:LEN) Hits New 52-Week Low After Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on the stock from $145.00 to $130.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Lennar traded as low as $117.90 and last traded at $121.07, with a volume of 259321 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $122.50.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Barclays reduced their price target on Lennar from $135.00 to $121.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Lennar from $130.00 to $125.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Lennar from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group decreased their price target on Lennar from $205.00 to $192.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $164.00 target price on shares of Lennar in a report on Thursday, December 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lennar presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $163.88.

Institutional Trading of Lennar

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Neo Ivy Capital Management lifted its holdings in Lennar by 276.6% in the 4th quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management now owns 27,231 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,713,000 after purchasing an additional 20,001 shares during the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. lifted its position in Lennar by 120.1% during the 4th quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 8,300 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,132,000 after acquiring an additional 4,529 shares during the last quarter. JT Stratford LLC boosted its stake in Lennar by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. JT Stratford LLC now owns 16,843 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,297,000 after purchasing an additional 913 shares during the period. Waverly Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Lennar during the 4th quarter valued at $329,000. Finally, Woodline Partners LP bought a new position in shares of Lennar during the 4th quarter worth about $1,956,000. Institutional investors own 81.10% of the company’s stock.

Lennar Trading Down 1.5 %

The company’s 50 day moving average is $135.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $162.05. 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 firm has a market cap of $32.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.42, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.67.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 18th. The construction company reported $4.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.15 by ($0.12). The company had revenue of $9.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.06 billion. Lennar had a net margin of 11.10% and a return on equity of 13.93%. Lennar’s quarterly revenue was down 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $4.82 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Lennar Co. will post 12.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 29th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 29th. Lennar’s dividend payout ratio is 13.95%.

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.