Hovnanian Enterprises Inc $HOV Shares Sold by Towle & Co.

Towle & Co. cut its stake in Hovnanian Enterprises Inc (NYSE:HOV) by 38.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 61,581 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 37,821 shares during the quarter. Hovnanian Enterprises comprises about 2.6% of Towle & Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Towle & Co.’s holdings in Hovnanian Enterprises were worth $6,830,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of HOV. Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in shares of Hovnanian Enterprises by 101.9% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 35,288 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,914,000 after buying an additional 17,811 shares during the period. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in shares of Hovnanian Enterprises in the first quarter valued at about $62,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Hovnanian Enterprises by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 14,847 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,647,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hovnanian Enterprises by 11.4% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 3,846 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $429,000 after buying an additional 393 shares during the period. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in Hovnanian Enterprises during the 1st quarter worth approximately $559,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HOV has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citizens Jmp started coverage on Hovnanian Enterprises in a report on Thursday, April 9th. They issued a “market underperform” rating and a $74.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Hovnanian Enterprises from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $97.00.

Hovnanian Enterprises Price Performance

HOV stock opened at $131.51 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $121.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $117.55. Hovnanian Enterprises Inc has a 52-week low of $91.52 and a 52-week high of $162.05. The company has a market capitalization of $770.67 million, a PE ratio of 36.13 and a beta of 1.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Hovnanian Enterprises (NYSE:HOV) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The construction company reported ($0.46) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($2.04) by $1.58. Hovnanian Enterprises had a return on equity of 11.23% and a net margin of 1.25%.The company had revenue of $667.65 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $626.40 million.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hovnanian Enterprises

In other news, Director J Larry Sorsby sold 1,032 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.57, for a total value of $147,132.24. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 187,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,719,899.12. The trade was a 0.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Ara K. Hovnanian sold 12,880 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.78, for a total transaction of $1,620,046.40. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 22.67% 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.