Short Interest in Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN) Decreases By 16.5%

Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN) saw a large drop in short interest during the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 8,810,795 shares, a drop of 16.5% from the December 31st total of 10,556,282 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 3,977,342 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.2 days. Currently, 3.8% of the company’s shares are sold short. Currently, 3.8% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 3,977,342 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.2 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $88.00 price target on Lennar in a report on Friday, January 9th. Argus upgraded Lennar to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Citizens Jmp reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Lennar in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Lennar from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Lennar from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and eight have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $106.38.

Lennar Stock Down 1.0%

NYSE:LEN traded down $1.06 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $108.29. The company had a trading volume of 438,305 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,241,216. Lennar has a 1 year low of $98.42 and a 1 year high of $144.24. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $115.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $121.80. The company has a current ratio of 4.89, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.56, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.44.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, December 16th. The construction company reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.27). The company had revenue of $9.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.17 billion. Lennar had a net margin of 6.08% and a return on equity of 9.27%. Lennar’s quarterly revenue was down 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.03 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Lennar will post 12.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lennar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 4th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Lennar’s payout ratio is currently 25.03%.

Institutional Trading of Lennar

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LEN. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Lennar by 73.9% during the third quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,702 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,349,000 after acquiring an additional 4,548 shares during the period. denkapparat Operations GmbH bought a new position in shares of Lennar during the second quarter valued at approximately $408,000. Swiss National Bank raised its position in shares of Lennar by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 702,872 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $77,745,000 after purchasing an additional 29,300 shares during the period. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC acquired a new position in Lennar during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $441,000. Finally, Waverton Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in Lennar during the 2nd quarter worth $1,051,000. Institutional investors own 81.10% of the company’s stock.

About Lennar

Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN) is a U.S.-based homebuilder and real estate company that designs, constructs and sells residential housing. The company offers a range of product types including single-family detached homes, townhomes and condominiums, serving buyers from entry-level and first-time purchasers to move-up, active-adult and luxury segments. Lennar also develops master-planned communities and manages land acquisition and entitlement activities that support its homebuilding operations.

In addition to home construction and sales, Lennar provides a suite of ancillary services intended to streamline the purchase process and capture additional value.