Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) Stock Holdings Lessened by Smead Capital Management Inc.

Smead Capital Management Inc. reduced its stake in Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) by 6.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,711,820 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 200,077 shares during the period. Lennar accounts for 7.2% of Smead Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Smead Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.95% of Lennar worth $404,170,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Coastline Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of Lennar by 80.8% during the fourth quarter. Coastline Trust Co now owns 24,515 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,654,000 after buying an additional 10,957 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in Lennar by 6,297.0% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 662,277 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $98,706,000 after acquiring an additional 651,924 shares during the period. PGGM Investments raised its position in Lennar by 16.3% in the third quarter. PGGM Investments now owns 88,872 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $9,974,000 after acquiring an additional 12,469 shares during the period. Patton Fund Management Inc. bought a new position in Lennar in the fourth quarter worth approximately $5,367,000. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC raised its position in Lennar by 7.0% in the third quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 1,808 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $203,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. 81.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Lennar

In other Lennar news, Director Amy Banse purchased 1,575 shares of Lennar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 10th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $157.00 per share, for a total transaction of $247,275.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 11,859 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,861,863. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 9.36% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Lennar Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of LEN stock traded up $0.90 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $152.78. 1,621,087 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,109,300. Lennar Co. has a 12-month low of $102.90 and a 12-month high of $172.59. The company has a current ratio of 5.47, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $159.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $141.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.53.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 14th. The construction company reported $2.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.36. Lennar had a net margin of 11.59% and a return on equity of 15.90%. The company had revenue of $7.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.39 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.12 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Lennar Co. will post 14.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 23rd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.31%. Lennar’s payout ratio is 14.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LEN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Lennar from $137.00 to $136.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Lennar from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Lennar from $161.00 to $157.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 18th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Lennar from $224.00 to $238.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Wedbush reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $144.00 price target on shares of Lennar in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Lennar presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $163.88.

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.