Lennar Corp., the second-largest U.S. homebuilder by revenue, reported fiscal first-quarter earnings that beat estimates as the year's busiest buying period gets under way.
Net income for the three months through February climbed to $115 million or $0.50 a share from $78.1 million or $0.35 cents a year earlier, the Miami-based company said in a statement on March 19. Earnings were expected to be $0.45 cents a share, the average of 18 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. New orders climbed 18%.
U.S. builders have been
"Early signals from this year's spring selling season indicate that the housing market is improving, and disappointing single-family starts and permits numbers should rebound shortly," Chief Executive Officer Stuart Miller said in the statement.
New orders rose to 5,287 from 4,465 a year earlier, with the dollar value for those orders climbing 25% to $1.83 billion, the company said. The average sales price of those homes rose 5.8% to $346,000 compared with $327,000 a year ago.
Lennar's revenue for the fiscal first quarter rose 21% to $1.64 billion. The gross margin on home sales was 23.1%, compared with 25.1% a year earlier. The decline was primarily caused by an increase in land, material and labor costs.
Lennar builds homes for first-time and move-up buyers, retirees and multiple-generation households in 17 states. It also invests in apartments, master-planned communities, mortgage financing and commercial real estate. This month it opened its first community of single-family rental homes, in Sparks, Nevada.
