Meritage Homes CORP (MTH) stock analysis
Close on Nov 11, 2026Market cap $4.29BP/E 15.0Yield 0.65%
StockData Score
Prices as of Nov 11, 2026How the score works
Mixed9 of 30 checks passed
Meritage Homes passes 9 of the 30 checks behind our score; 8 could not be run for lack of data and count as not passed. Each dot in the shape is one check — hover it for the numbers.
- Valuation
- 1/6
- Growth
- 0/6
- Past performance
- 1/6
- Financial health
- 4/6
- Dividend
- 3/6
What stands out
No debt
Meritage Homes has no borrowings on its latest balance sheet.
Earnings grew over 5 years
Net income grew 1.4% a year on average over the last five fiscal years.
Interest well covered
No meaningful interest expense to cover.
Debt covered by cash flow
There is no debt to cover.
What to watch
Margin of safety under 20%
The price is 26.3% above fair value, so there is no margin of safety.
Trading above fair value
The share price of $66.53 is above our fair value estimate of $52.69.
Return on equity under 15%
Return on equity was 5.8% over the last twelve months and averaged 19.6% over five years; we look for 15% on both.
EPS growing under 10% a year
Diluted EPS grew -22.0% a year over the last three fiscal years.
Valuation1/6
P/E above its 5-year median
Meritage Homes's P/E of 15.0 is above its own 5-year median of 7.1.
P/E above the industry
Meritage Homes's P/E of 15.0 is above the Operative Builders median of 14.1.
EV/EBITDA above its 5-year median
Meritage Homes's EV/EBITDA of 8.8 is above its 5-year median of 4.4.
P/B below the industry
Meritage Homes's price-to-book of 0.85 is below the Operative Builders median of 1.00.
Trading above fair value
The share price of $66.53 is above our fair value estimate of $52.69.
Margin of safety under 20%
The price is 26.3% above fair value, so there is no margin of safety.
Growth0/6
Revenue growth over 3 years
Needs three years of positive revenue.
EPS growing under 10% a year
Diluted EPS grew -22.0% a year over the last three fiscal years.
Earnings growth not accelerating
Net income grew -45.0% over the last twelve months, against a 5-year average of 1.4% a year.
Growth against the industry
Needs revenue for this year and last.
Guidance lowered
Meritage Homes lowered its full year 2026 home closing volume outlook on Jul 29, 2026.
Gross margin trend
This company does not report gross profit.
Past performance1/6
Return on equity under 15%
Return on equity was 5.8% over the last twelve months and averaged 19.6% over five years; we look for 15% on both.
Return on invested capital
Needs operating income and invested capital.
Return on equity below the industry
Meritage Homes's return on equity of 5.8% is below the Operative Builders median of 10.7%.
Earnings grew over 5 years
Net income grew 1.4% a year on average over the last five fiscal years.
Net margin against its history
Needs five years of revenue and net income.
Net margin against the industry
Needs revenue and net income.
Financial health4/6
No debt
Meritage Homes has no borrowings on its latest balance sheet.
Debt not rising
With no debt today, leverage cannot have risen.
Debt covered by cash flow
There is no debt to cover.
Interest well covered
No meaningful interest expense to cover.
Short-term liquidity
The balance sheet is not split into current and non-current items.
Bankruptcy risk in the grey zone
The Altman Z-score is 1.94; above 3 is the safe zone and below 1.8 the distress zone.
Dividend3/6
Pays a dividend
Meritage Homes paid dividends worth 2.8% of the share price over the last twelve months.
Yield below Treasuries
The 2.8% yield is below the 4.4% on a 1-year Treasury.
Yield below the top quarter
The top quarter of US dividend payers yield 3.8% or more; Meritage Homes yields 2.8%.
Dividend stability
Fewer than five years of dividend history.
Covered by earnings
Dividends take 41.5% of net income.
Covered by free cash flow
Dividends take 25.5% of free cash flow.
Fair value
How we estimate itOur estimate per share
$52.69
The share price is 26% above this estimate.
| Method | Multiple used | Own 5Y median | Industry median | Value per share | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P/E | 10.6× | 7.1× | 14.1× | $46.80 | 47% |
| EV/EBITDA | 6.5× | 4.4× | 8.6× | $51.90 | 41% |
| P/B | 1.0× | 1.0× | 1.0× | $79.04 | 12% |
| Earnings powerleft out, too far from the others | 10.1% cost of equity | – | – | $8.74 | – |
| Fair value | $52.69 | 100% | |||
Valuation over time
Using the earnings and balance sheet published at each date, not today's.
- P/E at month end
- Own 5-year median 7.1
- Operative Builders median 14.1
An estimate from reported numbers and market multiples, not a price target or investment advice. It can be far off for companies whose profits are about to change sharply.
Market risk
From the past year of daily prices.
Liquidity
Low risk
- Average value traded per day
- $68.79M
- Value traded per 1% price move
- $25.27M
Downside
Medium risk
- Typical loss in a bad month
- 20.8%
- Volatility (annualized)
- 41%
- Sharpe ratio, 1 year
- -0.12
- Beta to the S&P 500 (5Y)
- 1.03
Typical bad-month loss, week by week
Margins
Share of revenue, fiscal years 2011 to 2025
Gross margin
Operating margin
Net margin
Growth rates
Compound annual growth to fiscal 2025
| Per year | 1 year | 3 years | 5 years | 10 years | Five-year pace |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net income | -42.4% | -23.0% | +1.4% | +13.4% | |
| EPS, diluted | -40.8% | -22.0% | +2.9% | +15.2% | |
| Free cash flow | – | -37.5% | -28.9% | – | |
| Dividend per share | +14.7% | – | – | – |
Returns and balance sheet
10 fiscal years. Hover a measure to see how it is calculated.
| Measure | FY2016 | FY2020 | FY2025 | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return on equity | 11.2% | 19.6% | 8.8% | |
| Return on assets | 5.4% | 11.7% | 6.1% | |
| Capex to revenue | 0.6% | – | – | |
| Diluted shares | 85M | 77M | 71M |
Where the cash went
Fiscal 2021 to 2025, five years combined
Meritage Homes generated $1.26B from operations and spent $1.06B on capital expenditure, dividends and share buybacks. 14% of that went back into the business.
DuPont analysis
Return on equity split into margin, efficiency and leverage
| Fiscal year | Net margin | Asset turnover | Equity multiplier | Return on equity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2017 | 4.4% | 1.05× | 2.05× | 9.6% |
| FY2016 | 4.9% | 1.09× | 2.08× | 11.2% |
Piotroski F-Score
Nine tests of profitability, balance sheet and efficiency, fiscal 2025 against fiscal 2024
- ProfitableNet income above zero$453.01M
- Cash generatingOperating cash flow above zero$118.29M
- Return on assets improvedROA up on the prior year12.4% → 6.3%
- Earnings backed by cashOperating cash flow above net income$118.29M vs $453.01M
- Less leverageLong-term debt to assets fell– → –
- Better liquidityCurrent ratio rose– → –
- No dilutionShare count did not rise73M → 71M
- Gross margin improvedGross margin up on the prior year– → –
- More efficientAsset turnover rose– → –
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