Hovnanian Enterprises Inc $HOV Shares Sold by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lowered its position in Hovnanian Enterprises Inc (NYSE:HOV) by 29.6% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 14,674 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 6,182 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Hovnanian Enterprises were worth $1,627,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hovnanian Enterprises by 72.1% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 432 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in Hovnanian Enterprises by 614.1% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 557 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 479 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Hovnanian Enterprises during the 4th quarter worth about $117,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in Hovnanian Enterprises by 38.1% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,369 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $134,000 after purchasing an additional 378 shares during the period. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Hovnanian Enterprises during the 4th quarter worth about $213,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director J Larry Sorsby sold 1,032 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.57, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 0.55% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ara K. Hovnanian sold 12,880 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 22nd. The shares were 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. 22.67% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hovnanian Enterprises Stock Down 4.6%

Shares of NYSE HOV opened at $135.84 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $796.04 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.32 and a beta of 1.81. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $116.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $114.44. 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 Inc has a 52-week low of $91.52 and a 52-week high of $162.05.

Hovnanian Enterprises (NYSE:HOV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The construction company reported ($0.46) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.04) by $1.58. Hovnanian Enterprises had a return on equity of 11.23% and a net margin of 1.25%.The firm had revenue of $667.65 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $626.40 million.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on HOV. Weiss Ratings cut Hovnanian Enterprises from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Citizens Jmp assumed coverage on Hovnanian Enterprises in a report on Thursday, April 9th. They set a “market underperform” rating and a $74.00 target price on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $97.00.

About Hovnanian Enterprises

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.