Hovnanian Enterprises (NYSE:HOV) Shares Up 8.7% – Time to Buy?

Hovnanian Enterprises Inc (NYSE:HOV)’s share price was up 8.7% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $115.00 and last traded at $115.4140. Approximately 24,752 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 70% from the average daily volume of 83,258 shares. The stock had previously closed at $106.17.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on HOV. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hovnanian Enterprises in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Hovnanian Enterprises from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Hovnanian Enterprises from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $120.00.

Hovnanian Enterprises Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $717.51 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.09 and a beta of 2.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 0.40. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $111.79 and a 200 day moving average of $123.80.

Hovnanian Enterprises (NYSE:HOV) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, December 4th. The construction company reported ($0.51) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.63 by ($1.14). The business had revenue of $817.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $814.50 million. Hovnanian Enterprises had a net margin of 2.14% and a return on equity of 15.33%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $13.84 EPS.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in HOV. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Hovnanian Enterprises by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 9,283 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,193,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Penn Capital Management Company LLC bought a new position in Hovnanian Enterprises during the third quarter worth about $683,000. Mariner LLC grew its position in shares of Hovnanian Enterprises by 47.2% during the 3rd quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 6,998 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $899,000 after buying an additional 2,243 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Hovnanian Enterprises by 20.9% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 43,543 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $5,595,000 after acquiring an additional 7,525 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cannell & Spears LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hovnanian Enterprises in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $218,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.40% of the company’s stock.

Hovnanian Enterprises Company Profile

Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc is a publicly traded homebuilding company primarily engaged in the acquisition, development and construction of residential properties. Headquartered in Red Bank, New Jersey, the company operates through a network of regional homebuilding divisions that design and deliver a range of housing solutions, including single-family detached homes, townhomes and condominiums. Hovnanian combines land development, architectural design and construction services with in-house mortgage and insurance offerings to provide a comprehensive homebuying experience.

The company markets its communities under several branded product lines tailored to different buyer segments and price points.