Virtu Financial LLC Invests $850,000 in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH)

Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 5,528 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $850,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MTH. Allworth Financial LP increased its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 545.5% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 213 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Meritage Homes during the 4th quarter worth $92,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Meritage Homes by 235.1% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 677 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $104,000 after buying an additional 475 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of 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 valued at $187,000 after buying an additional 883 shares during the period. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Meritage Homes during the third quarter worth $230,000. 98.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Meritage Homes

In related news, CAO Alison Sasser sold 676 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.03, for a total transaction of $48,692.28. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $427,353.99. This trade represents a 10.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Clinton Szubinski sold 595 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.29, for a total value of $43,607.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 30,547 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,238,789.63. This represents a 1.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 1,683 shares of company stock valued at $122,547. 2.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Meritage Homes Stock Up 4.3 %

Shares of MTH opened at $73.37 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.27 billion, a PE ratio of 5.61 and a beta of 1.92. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $75.51 and its 200-day moving average is $86.79. Meritage Homes Co. has a 12 month low of $68.93 and a 12 month high of $106.99.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) last posted its quarterly 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Meritage Homes Co. will post 9.44 EPS for the current year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.43 dividend. This is an increase from Meritage Homes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. Meritage Homes’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Meritage Homes from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Meritage Homes from $126.00 to $118.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $103.00 price objective on shares of Meritage Homes in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $98.50 target price (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Meritage Homes in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meritage Homes presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $106.25.

Meritage Homes 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.