KB Home (NYSE:KBH) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

KB Home (NYSE:KBH) gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $61.79, but opened at $56.59. KB Home shares last traded at $57.88, with a volume of 1,193,732 shares changing hands.

The construction company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.56 by ($0.07). KB Home had a return on equity of 16.46% and a net margin of 9.45%. The business had revenue of $1.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.76 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.2% on a year-over-year basis.

KB Home Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 6th were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 6th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.69%. KB Home’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 11.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of KB Home from $67.00 to $63.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on KB Home from $63.00 to $57.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $75.00 target price on shares of KB Home in a report on Tuesday. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $80.00 price target (down from $93.00) on shares of KB Home in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of KB Home from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, KB Home presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $71.21.

Insider Activity

In other KB Home news, CFO Jeff Kaminski sold 27,500 shares of KB Home stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.77, for a total value of $1,891,175.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,473 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,370,708.21. The trade was a 44.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 3.89% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On KB Home

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its position in shares of KB Home by 65.6% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 540 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 214 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of KB Home by 43.6% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 590 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in KB Home by 275.7% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 759 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 557 shares during the period. Amundi increased its stake in KB Home by 29.6% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 880 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in KB Home during the third quarter worth $59,000. 96.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

KB Home Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $4.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.89. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $63.81 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $72.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 5.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

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.