KB Home (NYSE:KBH) Shares Sold by Lazard Asset Management LLC

Lazard Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in KB Home (NYSE:KBH) by 10.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,613 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 842 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in KB Home were worth $499,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in KBH. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in KB Home in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,638,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of KB Home by 61.2% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,327,809 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $87,264,000 after purchasing an additional 503,895 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of KB Home in the 4th quarter valued at $12,288,000. Quantbot Technologies LP raised its holdings in shares of KB Home by 4,083.5% in the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 146,422 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $9,623,000 after purchasing an additional 142,922 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of KB Home by 24.4% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 727,809 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $47,832,000 after purchasing an additional 142,913 shares during the last quarter. 96.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

KB Home Stock Down 3.4%

Shares of NYSE:KBH opened at $51.40 on Thursday. KB Home has a 1-year low of $48.90 and a 1-year high of $89.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 5.51 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The stock has a market cap of $3.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.45. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $55.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $64.61.

KB Home (NYSE:KBH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 24th. The construction company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $1.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.51 billion. KB Home had a return on equity of 16.46% and a net margin of 9.45%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.76 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that KB Home will post 8.42 EPS for the current year.

KB Home Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 8th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 8th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.95%. KB Home’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.20%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on KB Home from $81.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 7th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on KB Home from $67.00 to $63.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of KB Home from $57.00 to $55.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of KB Home from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of KB Home from $60.00 to $56.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $71.23.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Arthur Reginald Collins sold 5,000 shares of KB Home stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.38, for a total value of $271,900.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 10,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $558,047.56. The trade was a 32.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 3.89% of the company’s stock.

KB Home Company Profile

KB Home operates as a homebuilding company in the United States. It operates through four segments: West Coast, Southwest, Central, and Southeast. It builds and sells various homes, including attached and detached single-family residential homes, townhomes, and condominiums primarily for first-time, first move-up, second move-up, and active adult homebuyers.