Lennar (NYSE:LEN) Sets New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) shares hit a new 52-week low on Monday . The company traded as low as $134.00 and last traded at $134.25, with a volume of 260676 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $137.19.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LEN has been the subject of several research reports. Bank Of America (Bofa) raised their price target on shares of Lennar from $171.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Lennar from $192.00 to $173.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 13th. Barclays cut their price objective on Lennar from $181.00 to $135.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 20th. UBS Group lowered their target price on Lennar from $225.00 to $205.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Zelman & Associates upgraded Lennar from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lennar currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $175.19.

Lennar Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 4.90. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $164.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $169.00. The stock has a market cap of $36.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.61.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, December 18th. The construction company reported $4.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.15 by ($0.12). Lennar had a return on equity of 15.47% and a net margin of 11.51%. The company had revenue of $9.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.06 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.82 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Lennar Co. will post 14.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jeffrey Sonnenfeld sold 17,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.13, for a total value of $3,064,775.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 23,689 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,148,654.57. This trade represents a 42.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 9.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lennar

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Lennar by 23,048.0% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 150,462 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $28,209,000 after acquiring an additional 149,812 shares during the period. Smead Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Lennar by 3.5% during the third quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,666,905 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $499,991,000 after purchasing an additional 89,896 shares in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Lennar by 147.6% in the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 69,226 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $12,978,000 after purchasing an additional 41,264 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lennar by 101.2% in the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,673 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,626,000 after buying an additional 4,363 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Lennar by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 101,463 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $19,022,000 after buying an additional 8,092 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.