M.D.C. (NYSE:MDC) Research Coverage Started at StockNews.com

StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of M.D.C. (NYSE:MDC – Get Rating) in a research note released on Thursday morning. The firm issued a hold rating on the construction company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Wedbush restated a neutral rating on shares of M.D.C. in a research note on Tuesday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on M.D.C. from $30.50 to $27.50 and set an underweight rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and three have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, M.D.C. presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $27.50.

M.D.C. Stock Performance

Shares of MDC stock traded down $0.38 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $36.69. 2,962,994 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 600,792. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 2.84 and a current ratio of 8.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.68 billion, a PE ratio of 4.78 and a beta of 1.36. M.D.C. has a 12 month low of $27.04 and a 12 month high of $43.88. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $37.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $32.91.

M.D.C. (NYSE:MDC – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 31st. The construction company reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.45). The company had revenue of $1.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. M.D.C. had a return on equity of 19.24% and a net margin of 9.83%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.21 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that M.D.C. will post 2.61 EPS for the current year.

M.D.C. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 8th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 7th. M.D.C.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Herbert T. Buchwald sold 8,349 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.20, for a total value of $302,233.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other M.D.C. news, Director David E. Blackford sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.67, for a total transaction of $165,015.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 20,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $754,925.29. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Herbert T. Buchwald sold 8,349 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.20, for a total transaction of $302,233.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 15,849 shares of company stock valued at $582,299. Company insiders own 23.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of M.D.C. by 70.3% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 901 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 372 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of M.D.C. by 665.3% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 949 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 825 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of M.D.C. by 36.9% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 1,320 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 356 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of M.D.C. in the 2nd quarter valued at about $47,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of M.D.C. in the 1st quarter valued at about $72,000. Institutional investors own 82.21% of the company’s stock.

M.D.C. Company Profile

(Get Rating)

M.DC Holdings, Inc engages in proving homebuilding and financial services. It operates through the following business segments: West, Mountain, and East. The West segment includes operations in Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, and Washington. The Mountain segment refers to the operations in Colorado, Idaho, and Utah.