StockNews.com Begins Coverage on M.D.C. (NYSE:MDC)

Analysts at StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of M.D.C. (NYSE:MDC) in a note issued to investors on Thursday. The brokerage set a “hold” rating on the construction company’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on MDC. Evercore ISI cut M.D.C. from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $57.00 to $63.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Raymond James reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of M.D.C. in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $52.13.

M.D.C. Stock Performance

Shares of MDC stock opened at $62.92 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 3.92 and a current ratio of 9.76. M.D.C. has a 52 week low of $36.47 and a 52 week high of $63.00. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $62.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $52.84. The company has a market capitalization of $4.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.92 and a beta of 1.54.

M.D.C. (NYSE:MDC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The construction company reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.29 billion. M.D.C. had a net margin of 8.64% and a return on equity of 12.32%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.08 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that M.D.C. will post 5.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at M.D.C.

In other news, Director David E. Blackford sold 6,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.69, for a total transaction of $388,678.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 13,534 shares in the company, valued at approximately $848,446.46. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 23.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in M.D.C. by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 34,954 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,931,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of M.D.C. by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 15,308 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $846,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares during the period. Arden Trust Co increased its holdings in shares of M.D.C. by 5.3% during the 1st quarter. Arden Trust Co now owns 4,570 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $288,000 after acquiring an additional 232 shares during the last quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in M.D.C. by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 640 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares during the period. Finally, Nilsine Partners LLC lifted its holdings in M.D.C. by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 5,353 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $296,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.08% of the company’s stock.

About M.D.C.

M.DC Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the homebuilding and financial service businesses. Its homebuilding operations include purchasing finished lots or developing lots for the construction and sale primarily of single-family detached homes to first-time and first-time move-up homebuyers under the Richmond American Homes name.