Lennar, one of the nation’s largest home builders, missed earnings estimates for its fourth quarter and issued disappointing guidance, sending shares falling in after-hours trading. It isn’t a good omen for other builders—but the report contains some company-specific quirks.
Lennar earned $1.93 a share, or $2.03 a share, excluding mark-to-market gains on technology investments, and a $156 million one-time loss on an exchange offer linked to its land development spinoff, on $9.4 billion in revenue in its fourth quarter. Analysts were looking for $2.21 a share on roughly $9 billion in earnings, according to FactSet.
For the full year, Lennar reported earnings of $7.98 a share, or $8.06 excluding adjustments, on $34.2 billion in revenue.
The stock was down 4.4% shortly after the report, after closing 1.8% lower following Tuesday trading.
It has been a difficult time for companies in the housing space as buying costs have remained high and home sales slow. “Even as interest rates moved slightly lower in our fourth quarter, the overall market remained challenged,” Lennar co-CEO Stuart Miller said in a statement.
The company continued to offer incentives and adjust prices while focusing on volume, Miller said. Builders who offer incentives do so at the expense of their margin. Lennar’s margin on home sales was 17% in the fourth quarter, below the 17.5% analysts expected.
The company expects new orders in a range from 18,000 to 19,000 in its first quarter and 17,000 to 18,000 deliveries, both lower than the 19,911 new orders and 20,089 deliveries analysts expected. Its anticipated margin on home sales, between 15% and 16%, was also lower than the 16.9% analysts expected.
Investors looking for signs of improvement to come didn’t find it in the builder’s outlook. But Lennar has been among the builders most outspoken about using incentives to drive sales. The company previously described using its margins as a “shock absorber” in a difficult market.
Miller said in September that the company would “help establish a floor on margin” by easing delivery expectations for the fourth quarter and reducing the pressure on sales. “For Lennar, this is an opportune time to pause and let the market catch up a little bit,” he said on the company’s earnings call at the time.
The company’s prepared remarks included with its earnings release suggest it will continue to offer deals and discounts to spur sales. “Our strategy remains consistent and clear: maintain volume, adapt to evolving conditions, reduce costs, and support housing affordability,” Miller said.
The company will discuss its results on a call Wednesday at 11 a.m. Eastern.
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