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Lennar Corp (LEN) Q1 2025 Earnings Call Highlights: Navigating Market Challenges with Strategic ...

In This Article:

  • Average Sales Price: Declined to $408,000, 1% lower than last year.

  • Homes Started: 17,651 homes.

  • Homes Delivered: 17,834 homes.

  • Homes Sold: 18,355 homes.

  • Sales Incentives: Increased to approximately 13%.

  • Gross Margin: Reduced to 18.7%.

  • SG&A: Came in at 8.5%.

  • Net Margin: 10.2%.

  • Community Count: Increased from 1,447 to 1,584 communities.

  • Cash on Book: $2.3 billion.

  • Debt-to-Total Capital Ratio: 8.9%.

  • Share Repurchase: 5.2 million shares for $703 million.

  • Liquidity: Approximately $5.3 billion.

  • Homesites Owned: 13,000 homesites.

  • Homesites Controlled: 533,000 homesites.

  • Inventory Turn: 1.7 times.

  • Return on Inventory: Almost 30%.

  • Book Value Per Share: About $86.

  • Q2 New Orders Guidance: 22,500 to 23,500 homes.

  • Q2 Deliveries Guidance: 19,500 to 20,500 homes.

  • Q2 Average Sales Price Guidance: $390,000 to $400,000.

  • Q2 Gross Margin Guidance: Approximately 18%.

  • Q2 SG&A Guidance: 8% to 8.2%.

  • Q2 EPS Guidance: Approximately $1.80 to $2 per share.

Release Date: March 21, 2025

For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript.

Positive Points

  • Lennar Corp (NYSE:LEN) successfully completed the Moro spin-off and Rausch Coleman acquisition, supporting their transition to an asset-light land-light model.

  • The company maintained a strong balance sheet with $2.3 billion in cash and an 8.9% debt-to-total capital ratio.

  • Lennar Corp (NYSE:LEN) achieved a sales pace of 4.1 homes per community per month, aligning with their target and demonstrating operational efficiency.

  • Construction costs decreased by 2.5% year-over-year, reaching the lowest level since Q3 2021, indicating effective cost management.

  • The company repurchased 5.2 million shares for $703 million, demonstrating a commitment to returning capital to shareholders.

Negative Points

  • The macroeconomic environment remains challenging with high mortgage interest rates, impacting housing market demand.

  • Lennar Corp (NYSE:LEN) experienced a decline in average sales price to $408,000, 1% lower than the previous year.

  • Sales incentives rose to approximately 13%, significantly impacting gross margins, which fell to 18.7%.

  • The company faces ongoing pressure on margins due to the need for incentives to maintain sales volume.

  • Consumer confidence and affordability issues continue to limit actionable demand in the housing market.

Q & A Highlights

Q: What is Lennar's view on the normalized operating margin and the path to achieve it? A: Stuart Miller, Executive Chairman and Co-CEO, explained that Lennar is focused on improving efficiencies across all business elements, especially after the Millrose spin-off. The current high level of incentives is temporary, and the company expects to achieve a significantly higher operating margin once these incentives normalize. Diane Bessette, CFO, added that historically, SG&A was around 7% and corporate G&A around 1.5%, suggesting room for improvement from current levels.