Lennar (NYSE:LEN) Upgraded by Zelman & Associates to Outperform

Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of Lennar (NYSE:LEN) from a neutral rating to an outperform rating in a research note published on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports.

LEN has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Raymond James cut shares of Lennar from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. BTIG Research lowered their target price on shares of Lennar from $177.00 to $175.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 20th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Lennar from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. JMP Securities restated a market outperform rating and issued a $170.00 price objective on shares of Lennar in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut Lennar from a buy rating to a neutral rating and cut their price target for the stock from $180.00 to $174.00 in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $181.94.

Lennar Stock Performance

Lennar stock opened at $183.13 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $50.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.61. Lennar has a 1-year low of $102.90 and a 1-year high of $193.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 4.90 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $177.67 and a 200-day simple moving average of $164.42.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, September 19th. The construction company reported $3.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.62 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $9.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.14 billion. Lennar had a net margin of 11.51% and a return on equity of 15.47%. Lennar’s revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.91 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Lennar will post 14.13 EPS for the current year.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 24th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 9th. Lennar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.60%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lennar

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Lakewood Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Lennar by 0.8% in the second quarter. Lakewood Asset Management LLC now owns 9,385 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,407,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC increased its position in shares of Lennar by 1.5% during the second quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 4,870 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $730,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Lennar by 5.7% during the second quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,381 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $207,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Lennar by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,540 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $231,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BBR Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Lennar by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. BBR Partners LLC now owns 2,427 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $364,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.10% of the company’s stock.

About Lennar

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.