Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) Holdings Raised by Ellsworth Advisors LLC

Ellsworth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) by 1.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,215 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 247 shares during the period. Ellsworth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Lennar were worth $2,417,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Lennar in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Lennar in the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. BluePath Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Lennar in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Lennar in the 2nd quarter worth about $46,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Lennar in the 3rd quarter worth about $56,000. 81.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lennar Price Performance

Shares of Lennar stock traded up $3.48 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $171.98. 2,132,897 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,324,459. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 5.47 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The firm has a market cap of $48.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.05, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.52. Lennar Co. has a 52 week low of $100.95 and a 52 week high of $172.59. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $156.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $136.98.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 14th. The construction company reported $2.57 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $7.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.39 billion. Lennar had a return on equity of 15.90% and a net margin of 11.59%. Lennar’s revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.12 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Lennar Co. will post 14.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Lennar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 24th were given a $0.50 dividend. This is an increase from Lennar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 23rd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.16%. Lennar’s payout ratio is presently 14.02%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on LEN. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Lennar from $175.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Lennar from $161.00 to $157.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 18th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $170.00 target price on shares of Lennar in a report on Friday, March 15th. Raymond James raised their target price on Lennar from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 19th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Lennar from $173.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $162.69.

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.