LEN

A luxury builder in a soft market has bought back enough stock to outrun three years of shrinking profits, and the question is what happens when land competes for the same cash. Toll Brothers (TOL) has gained 7.7% over the past year but slipped over the last six months, and it trades about 10% below its 52-week high, a quiet year for a builder whose management described the sales environment in August as subdued. Over the last three years, earnings per share rose while net income fell, and what closed that gap was not the business but the share count. Toll Has Bought Itself Back Faster Than Profits Fell Averaged over those three years, net income has fallen 2.8% a year while earnings per share have risen 2.3% a year. Nothing operational explains the difference; it is arithmetic. The company has retired about 5.1% of its shares a year on average across that stretch, and 4.8% in the past twelve months alone, so each remaining owner's claim on a smaller profit pool grew anyway. With the dividend added, the whole payout is a 5.3% shareholder yield, once stock compensation is netted out. A Million-Dollar Buyer, And Upgrades Across The Board That yield is funded by a narrow, wealthy slice of the housing market. The luxury move-up business, where the average home sells for about $1.35 million, was roughly 61% of home sales revenue in fiscal Q3 2026 and carries the highest margin of the company's buyer segments. The spending does not stop at signing: across Toll's buyers as a whole, upgrades, structural options and lot premiums averaged $207,000 a home in the quarter, and management says design studio work of that sort is highly accretive to margin. Pricing holds best where it matters most: the more expensive the home, the smaller the incentive as a share of its price. Growth Gets The Cash Before Shareholders Do Free cash flow covers the buybacks and dividends about 1.6 times over, but the payout is not what that cash is aimed at first. Management puts growth first in the capital-allocation order and funds repurchases out of the operating cash flow that is left, and growth here means land: roughly $452 million spent on land acquisition in fiscal Q3 2026, against $2.65 billion of home sales revenue in that quarter. So far that cash flow has covered both, and the fiscal 2026 repurchase plan was raised to $700 million from $650 million. Net debt runs at about 1.1 times EBITDA, a moderate load rather than a stretched one. Balance sheets of that kind are a standing feature of the Trefis High Quality Portfolio's holdings. Cheap Against Earnings That Still Move With The Cycle At 10.9 times trailing earnings, the market is not asking much for the engine. That is a case for patience rather than a promise. Over three years the stock returned 96% in price, though it was up 119% at its peak and has handed some of that back, and buybacks were only one contributor alongside a moving multiple. The engine is real and funded; the profits it works on have shrunk over the last three years, and management, four years into a difficult housing market, is not yet calling a bottom. Whether the retirement pace survives a leaner year is the open question, and the dividend and buyback record is where the answer shows up first. A Cheap Compounder Is Still One Cyclical Bet An engine that quietly retires stock is worth owning, but it sits inside one industry and one housing cycle. Investors who want that compounding spread across many businesses rather than one builder can start with the Trefis High Quality Portfolio. That portfolio has a track record of outpacing the three major indices - the S&P 500, S&P Mid-cap, and Russell 2000.

LSI (LYTS) came out with quarterly earnings of $0.18 per share, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.29 per share. This compares to earnings of $0.26 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items. This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of -37.93%. A quarter ago, it was expected that this lighting and LED display company would post earnings of $0.12 per share when it actually produced earnings of $0.06, delivering a surprise of -50%. Over the last four quarters, the company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates two times. LSI, which belongs to the Zacks Building Products - Lighting industry, posted revenues of $234.62 million for the quarter ended June 2026, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 6.57%. This compares to year-ago revenues of $155.07 million. The company has topped consensus revenue estimates four times over the last four quarters. The sustainability of the stock's immediate price movement based on the recently-released numbers and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management's commentary on the earnings call. LSI shares have added about 31.3% since the beginning of the year versus the S&P 500's gain of 12.6%. While LSI has outperformed the market so far this year, the question that comes to investors' minds is: what's next for the stock? There are no easy answers to this key question, but one reliable measure that can help investors address this is the company's earnings outlook. Not only does this include current consensus earnings expectations for the coming quarter(s), but also how these expectations have changed lately. Empirical research shows a strong correlation between near-term stock movements and trends in earnings estimate revisions. Investors can track such revisions by themselves or rely on a tried-and-tested rating tool like the Zacks Rank, which has an impressive track record of harnessing the power of earnings estimate revisions. Ahead of this earnings release, the estimate revisions trend for LSI was mixed. While the magnitude and direction of estimate revisions could change following the company's just-released earnings report, the current status translates into a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) for the stock. So, the shares are expected to perform in line with the market in the near future. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. It will be interesting to see how estimates for the coming quarters and the current fiscal year change in the days ahead. The current consensus EPS estimate is $0.23 on $226 million in revenues for the coming quarter and $1.18 on $883.14 million in revenues for the current fiscal year. Investors should be mindful of the fact that the outlook for the industry can have a material impact on the performance of the stock as well. In terms of the Zacks Industry Rank, Building Products - Lighting is currently in the top 44% of the 250 plus Zacks industries. Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by a factor of more than 2 to 1. Lennar (LEN), another stock in the broader Zacks Construction sector, has yet to report results for the quarter ended August 2026. This homebuilder is expected to post quarterly earnings of $1.31 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of -34.5%. The consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has remained unchanged over the last 30 days. Lennar's revenues are expected to be $8.33 billion, down 5.4% from the year-ago quarter. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report LSI Industries Inc. (LYTS) : Free Stock Analysis Report Lennar Corporation (LEN) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

Toll Brothers (TOL) came out with quarterly earnings of $2.97 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.9 per share. This compares to earnings of $3.73 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items. This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of +2.41%. A quarter ago, it was expected that this home builder would post earnings of $2.58 per share when it actually produced earnings of $2.72, delivering a surprise of +5.43%. Over the last four quarters, the company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates three times. Toll Brothers, which belongs to the Zacks Building Products - Home Builders industry, posted revenues of $2.66 billion for the quarter ended July 2026, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.36%. This compares to year-ago revenues of $2.95 billion. The company has topped consensus revenue estimates four times over the last four quarters. The sustainability of the stock's immediate price movement based on the recently-released numbers and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management's commentary on the earnings call. Toll Brothers shares have added about 7.6% since the beginning of the year versus the S&P 500's gain of 13.1%. While Toll Brothers has underperformed the market so far this year, the question that comes to investors' minds is: what's next for the stock? There are no easy answers to this key question, but one reliable measure that can help investors address this is the company's earnings outlook. Not only does this include current consensus earnings expectations for the coming quarter(s), but also how these expectations have changed lately. Empirical research shows a strong correlation between near-term stock movements and trends in earnings estimate revisions. Investors can track such revisions by themselves or rely on a tried-and-tested rating tool like the Zacks Rank, which has an impressive track record of harnessing the power of earnings estimate revisions. Ahead of this earnings release, the estimate revisions trend for Toll Brothers was mixed. While the magnitude and direction of estimate revisions could change following the company's just-released earnings report, the current status translates into a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) for the stock. So, the shares are expected to perform in line with the market in the near future. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. It will be interesting to see how estimates for the coming quarters and the current fiscal year change in the days ahead. The current consensus EPS estimate is $4.90 on $3.5 billion in revenues for the coming quarter and $12.69 on $10.7 billion in revenues for the current fiscal year. Investors should be mindful of the fact that the outlook for the industry can have a material impact on the performance of the stock as well. In terms of the Zacks Industry Rank, Building Products - Home Builders is currently in the top 42% of the 250 plus Zacks industries. Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by a factor of more than 2 to 1. One other stock from the same industry, Lennar (LEN), is yet to report results for the quarter ended August 2026. This homebuilder is expected to post quarterly earnings of $1.31 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of -34.5%. The consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has remained unchanged over the last 30 days. Lennar's revenues are expected to be $8.33 billion, down 5.4% from the year-ago quarter. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Toll Brothers Inc. (TOL) : Free Stock Analysis Report Lennar Corporation (LEN) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

Abel ended BRK-B's 14-quarter selling streak by deploying $23.5 billion in Q2 2026, anchored by a $10 billion private GOOGL placement at preferential terms unavailable to retail investors. Abel acquired TMHC outright at $72.50 per share as Lennar CEO Stuart Miller reports buyer incentives narrowing for the first time in three years. Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Berkshire Hathaway didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today. Greg Abel, in his first year as chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK-A, NYSE:BRK-B) deployed roughly $23.5 billion into equities during the second quarter of 2026, ending a stretch of about three years in which Berkshire had sold more stock than it bought. The reversal was disclosed in the 8-K filed on August 11, 2026. The destinations of the money reveal a coherent capital allocation stance from a new operator, putting a record cash pile of $380 billion at the end of Q1 2026 back to work. A $10 billion private placement in Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG, NASDAQ:GOOGL) that closed June 4, a fresh add to Lennar, an outright cash acquisition of homebuilder Taylor Morrison, and roughly $4.5 billion of repurchases of Berkshire's own shares signal Abel's priorities. For a retirement-focused investor taking cues from Berkshire, the question is which moves are reachable for an individual investor and which remain structurally out of reach. Berkshire took the Alphabet shares directly from the company in a negotiated private placement, rather than accumulating them in the open market as an ordinary buyer would. That is a transaction an ordinary investor cannot replicate. Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Berkshire Hathaway didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today. Alphabet's Q2 revenue grew 24.2% year over year to $119.80 billion, with Google Cloud accelerating to 82% growth and CapEx running at $44.92 billion in a single quarter as the company builds AI infrastructure at scale. Every dollar of that CapEx flows to the power, cooling, and networking suppliers behind the data centers, seven of which we profiled in a free report you can grab here. The business is capital-hungry in a way that suits Berkshire's balance sheet and is unfriendly to smaller holders. Alphabet suspended its buyback in Q2 2026 and raised roughly $70 billion in combined equity and debt to fund the build. Abel used Berkshire's cash to become one of the sources of that equity on preferential terms, likely at a negotiated discount to the market. A retail investor buying GOOGL on August 14 paid $345.90, up 70.93% over the prior year. The thesis is reachable, though the pricing terms remain exclusive to Berkshire. Abel is spending most freely on housing, where the arithmetic is friendlier to individual investors. Alongside its investment in Lennar (NYSE:LEN), Berkshire agreed on May 31 to acquire Taylor Morrison outright for $72.50 per share in cash and closed the deal on July 24. Taylor Morrison (NYSE:TMHC) last traded at $72.45 on the closing date, essentially at the deal price. Lennar is down 32.11% over the past year, and CEO Stuart Miller told shareholders that buyer incentives had narrowed to 12.9% from levels closer to 14%, describing the gap as narrowing "for the first time in three years." June housing starts came in at 1.43 million annualized units, inside the healthy range, and the Case-Shiller index sat at 335.1 in May, near the top of its historical distribution. Abel is buying builders while volumes are firm and prices are elevated. The buyback signal is the cleanest. Berkshire repurchased its own shares aggressively when the stock traded near book value, a P/B near book value against a low double-digit P/E, and the shares are up only 0.27% year to date. That is management telling shareholders the stock is fair value at current levels. The Alphabet placement offers a thesis worth studying even where the terms remain out of reach for individuals. The homebuilder call is the one an ordinary investor can most literally follow, provided the view is that incentive normalization is real, and that rate relief eventually arrives. Following Abel here means accepting cyclical risk in exchange for a long-duration housing shortage that remains unresolved. Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Berkshire Hathaway didn't make the cut. Grab the names FREE today. Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

Lennar recently held grand openings for Hitching Post Farms in Madison, Alabama, and the Sutton and Hollis home collections in Valencia, California, expanding its single-family offerings with prices starting in the high US$200,000s and low US$1,000,000s respectively. These communities highlight Lennar’s focus on well-located, amenity-rich neighborhoods with included premium finishes, near major job centers and highly rated schools. Next, we’ll examine how this expansion into new, higher-amenity communities fits with concerns about Lennar’s near-term earnings outlook. Explore 26 top quantum computing companies leading the revolution in next-gen technology and shaping the future with breakthroughs in quantum algorithms, superconducting qubits, and cutting-edge research. To own Lennar, you need to believe its asset-light, volume-focused model can work through a cooler housing market and margin pressure. The latest community openings in Alabama and California support the volume and mix story, but do not fundamentally change the near term concern around softer earnings and weaker recent profitability, or the key risk that higher mortgage rates and affordability issues could keep demand and margins under pressure for longer than expected. The grand opening of Sutton and Hollis in Valencia, California, is particularly relevant because it reinforces Lennar’s push into higher-amenity, higher-priced communities while maintaining scale. This expansion sits alongside cost and efficiency efforts that consensus analysts see as central catalysts for more predictable volume and improved margins over time, even as recent results show compressed net income and earnings per share versus last year. Yet beneath the new-community headlines, one issue investors should be aware of is how sustained sales incentives could keep eating into margins if... Read the full narrative on Lennar (it's free!) Lennar's narrative projects $39.8 billion revenue and $1.7 billion earnings by 2029. This requires 6.8% yearly revenue growth and about a $0.1 billion earnings increase from $1.6 billion today. Uncover how Lennar's forecasts yield a $88.54 fair value, a 3% upside to its current price. Some of the most optimistic analysts were assuming Lennar could reach about US$41.6 billion in revenue and US$2.3 billion in earnings, yet the latest openings also highlight the risk that rising sales incentives in tougher markets might blunt those ambitions, so you should recognise that views on Lennar’s future can differ widely and may shift as this new information is absorbed. Explore 5 other fair value estimates on Lennar - why the stock might be worth as much as 33% more than the current price! Don't just follow the ticker - dig into the data and build a conviction that's truly your own. A great starting point for your Lennar research is our analysis highlighting 4 key rewards and 1 important warning sign that could impact your investment decision. Our free Lennar research report provides a comprehensive fundamental analysis summarized in a single visual - the Snowflake - making it easy to evaluate Lennar's overall financial health at a glance. Markets shift fast. These stocks won't stay hidden for long. Get the list while it matters: We've uncovered the 9 dividend fortresses yielding 5%+ that don't just survive market storms, but thrive in them. Outshine the giants: these 16 early-stage AI stocks could fund your retirement. Rare earth metals are an input to most high-tech devices, military and defence systems and electric vehicles. The global race is on to secure supply of these critical minerals. Beat the pack to uncover the 28 best rare earth metal stocks of the very few that mine this essential strategic resource. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Companies discussed in this article include LEN. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email [email protected]

Miami, Florida-based Lennar Corporation (LEN) operates as a homebuilder primarily under the Lennar brand in the United States. The company has a market cap of $20.4 billion, the company operates through Homebuilding East, Homebuilding Central, Homebuilding South Central, Homebuilding West, Financial Services, Multifamily, and Lennar Other segments. LEN is expected to release its Q3 2026 earnings soon. Ahead of the event, analysts expect the company’s EPS to be $1.31 on a diluted basis, down 34.5% from $2 in the year-ago quarter. The company has exceeded Wall Street’s EPS estimates in only one of its last four quarters, while missing on three occasions. Dear SpaceX Stock Fans, Mark Your Calendars for August 6 Amazon Stock Just Hit a Major Hurdle Ahead of Earnings Elon Musk Just Revealed a Quiet Win for Tesla’s AI Ambitions Our exclusive Barchart Brief newsletter is your FREE midday guide to what's moving stocks, sectors, and investor sentiment - delivered right when you need the info most. Subscribe today! For fiscal 2026, analysts project the company’s EPS to be $5.52, down 31.5% from $8.06 in fiscal 2025. However, its EPS is expected to rise by roughly 20.7% year over year (YoY) to $6.66 in fiscal 2027. LEN’s stock has declined 25.4% over the past 52 weeks, underperforming the S&P 500 Index’s ($SPX) 16.5% rise and the State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF’s (XLY) 1.8% fall during the same time frame. On June 12, LEN stock fell 4.9% following the release of its mixed Q2 2026 earnings. The company’s revenue for the quarter amounted to $7.9 billion, failing to touch the Street’s forecasts. However, its EPS came in at $1.24, surpassing Wall Street’s estimates. Despite the company’s EPS exceeding analyst estimates, it declined sharply from the same quarter last year’s EPS of $1.83. Additionally, its operating margin came in at 5.9%, also marking a decline from 7.5% in the previous year’s same quarter. Analysts are moderately bearish about LEN, with the stock having a “Moderate Sell” rating overall. Among the 18 analysts covering the stock, one is recommending a “Strong Buy,” eight suggest a “Hold,” two recommend a “Moderate Sell,” and seven suggest a “Strong Sell.” LEN’s average analyst price target is $85.07, indicating a marginal upside from the current levels. On the date of publication, Aritra Gangopadhyay did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. This article was originally published on Barchart.com

Never miss an important update on your stock portfolio and cut through the noise. Over 7 million investors trust Simply Wall St to stay informed where it matters for FREE. Lennar stock has retreated sharply over the past year, yet the valuation checks point to a mixed picture rather than a clear bargain or a clear premium. This leaves investors weighing a softer share price against only partial support from the broader metrics. Lennar shares have declined 25.1% over the past year, which means anyone buying today is looking at a stock that has already given back a significant amount of value. Future returns may hinge on how consistently Lennar can convert its housing activity into cash flow while managing the risks that come with a cyclical, capital intensive business model. The stock looks undervalued on some earnings based multiples, but with a valuation score of 3 out of 6 checks, the overall picture is still balanced rather than clearly cheap. The issue now is whether Lennar's current share price already reflects these mixed signals or still leaves room for a more attractive risk reward trade off. Find out why Lennar's -25.1% return over the last year is lagging behind its peers. The P/E ratio suits Lennar because earnings remain a key yardstick for a mature, profit making homebuilder. Right now, Lennar trades on a P/E of about 12.8x, which sits slightly below the Consumer Durables industry average of 13.4x and close to the peer group average of 13.0x. On simple comparisons, the stock lines up around the middle of its sector rather than screening as either extremely cheap or expensive. However, the fair P/E ratio implied by the broader model is 22.0x, which is well above Lennar's current 12.8x multiple. That gap suggests the market price does not fully reflect the earnings profile implied by those inputs, even after accounting for sector, size and risk factors. For investors weighing the recent pullback in Lennar stock, this P/E framework points to a valuation that appears more supportive than stretched. On the P/E multiple, Lennar stock appears undervalued compared with the level suggested by its fair ratio. See what the numbers say about this price — find out in our valuation breakdown. Simply Wall St Narratives for Lennar pick up where the valuation puzzle leaves off by setting out what would need to happen to Lennar's future growth, margins and earnings for the stock to be worth materially more or materially less than today's price. Instead of a single output from a ratio or model, they describe the future it depends on so you can see which assumptions are playing out over time, and they sit on Simply Wall St's Community page. The community is split on Lennar, with one side seeing the stock as roughly in line with its fundamentals and the other arguing that risks are being underpriced. Bull case: roughly fairly valued Read the full Bull Case to see why Lennar could be undervalued Bear case: 14% overvalued Read the full Bear Case to see why Lennar could be overvalued Do you think there's more to the story for Lennar? Head over to our Community to see what others are saying! For Lennar, the current picture is that the stock screens as undervalued on earnings based multiples, yet broader checks still come through as mixed rather than clearly supportive. That leaves you weighing a seemingly supportive P/E gap against the reality that other valuation signals are less conclusive. The real hinge from here is whether Lennar can sustain the earnings quality and cash generation that would justify a stronger multiple, or whether the market is correctly pricing in the cyclicality and housing related risks and turning the apparent discount into more of a value trap than a clear opportunity. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Companies discussed in this article include LEN. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email [email protected]

Comfort Systems USA, Inc. FIX delivered impressive second-quarter 2026 results, with earnings and revenues surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate and increasing sharply year over year.The quarterly performance reflected continued strength across its end markets, robust execution by the operating teams and sustained demand that drove record backlog growth, reinforcing the company’s confidence in the business momentum. The company reported earnings per share of $12.53, which topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $10.38 by 20.7% and increased 91.9% from $6.53 reported in the year-ago quarter. Comfort Systems USA, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Comfort Systems USA, Inc. Quote Revenues of $3.27 billion also surpassed the consensus mark of $2.94 billion by 10.96% and rose 50.3% from $2.17 billion generated in the prior-year quarter. Comfort Systems generated Mechanical segment revenues of $2.30 billion in the second quarter, up 40.1% from the prior-year quarter. The Electrical segment's revenues climbed 81.2% year over year to $969 million, reflecting strong demand across electrical contracting operations and contributions from acquisitions.Customer mix continued to underscore the dominance of technology-related work. Technology customers represented 58.7% of second-quarter consolidated revenues, followed by manufacturing at 16.4%, healthcare at 7.1%, education at 5.1% and government at 4.4%.Activity type also highlighted where project activity remained concentrated. New construction accounted for 75.1% of revenues, while existing building construction contributed 14.8%. Service projects represented 4.4% of revenues, and service calls, maintenance and monitoring comprised the remaining 5.7%, reinforcing the company's continued emphasis on large construction projects. Backlog as of June 30, 2026, totaled $14.06 billion, increasing 12.9% from $12.45 billion at March 31, 2026, and jumping 73.2% from $8.12 billion reported a year ago. On a same-store basis, backlog climbed to $13.70 billion from $8.12 billion in the year-ago period.The mix continued to skew toward the Mechanical segment, which represented 71.5% of total backlog ($10.06 billion), while the Electrical segment contributed 28.5% ($4 billion). The company also noted that approximately 65-75% of its remaining performance obligations are expected to be recognized as revenues over the next 12 months, providing healthy visibility into growth. Operating performance strengthened alongside the sharp increase in revenues. Gross profit increased to $844.2 million from $509.9 million a year ago, and gross margin expanded to 25.9% from 23.5%, reflecting improved project execution and operating leverage.Selling, general and administrative expenses increased to $287 million, but as a percentage of revenues, SG&A improved to 8.8% from 9.7%. Operating income climbed to $558 million from $299.9 million a year earlier, lifting the operating margin to 17.1% from 13.8%.Adjusted EBITDA rose to $600.5 million from $334.1 million in the year-ago quarter, while adjusted EBITDA margin expanded 300 basis points to 18.4%. As of June 30, 2026, Comfort Systems had cash and cash equivalents of $1.85 billion, up from $981.9 million at 2025-end. Long-term debt declined to $53.8 million from $139.1 million at Dec. 31, 2025, further strengthening the company's balance sheet.During the first six months of 2026, net cash provided by operating activities totaled $1.53 billion compared with $164.5 million in the year-ago period. Free cash flow increased to $1.24 billion from $113.1 million a year earlier. During the quarter, the company also paid dividends of 80 cents per share and continued repurchasing shares, reflecting its robust cash generation and shareholder return strategy. Comfort Systems currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.PulteGroup, Inc. PHM reported better-than-expected second-quarter 2026 results, with adjusted earnings and total revenues topping the Zacks Consensus Estimate, but declining year over year. The quarterly results reflect reduced home-closing volumes, softer average selling prices (“ASP”) and margin compression.PulteGroup ended the quarter with a backlog of 10,966 homes, up 1.7% from the prior-year level. Backlog units increased in the Northeast, Florida, Midwest and Texas, while the Southeast and West reported declines. The value of homes in backlog slipped 0.6% to $6.80 billion. The divergence between higher units and lower value indicates that the average value of homes in backlog declined year over year, consistent with PHM’s broader pricing pressure.D.R. Horton, Inc. DHI reported third-quarter fiscal 2026 earnings of $3.20 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.99 by 7%. Revenues of $9.23 billion also surpassed the consensus mark of $9.19 billion by 0.5%. On a year-over-year basis, earnings declined 4.8%, while revenues increased marginally.DHI’s earnings and revenue beat was driven by higher home-closing volumes, resilient home sales margins, disciplined management of pricing and incentives, and contributions from the Rental, Forestar and Financial Services businesses. However, lower profitability, elevated incentives and cautious consumer demand continued to weigh on results. D.R. Horton now expects fiscal 2026 consolidated revenues of $32.5-$33 billion, down from $33.5-$34.5 billion expected earlier.Lennar Corporation LEN reported mixed second-quarter fiscal 2026 results, with adjusted earnings topping the Zacks Consensus Estimate while revenues missed the same. Year over year, both metrics declined, given ongoing softness in housing demand and a lower ASP for homes delivered.LEN’s Homebuilding revenues declined 2% year over year to $7.62 billion from $7.84 billion, with home deliveries increasing 2% to 20,519 homes from 20,131 homes a year ago. Backlog at quarter-end increased to 16,818 homes from 15,538 homes. For the third quarter of fiscal 2026, Lennar expects home deliveries in the range of 20,500-21,500 and new orders between 21,000 and 22,000 homes. Gross margin on home sales is expected to be approximately 16%. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Comfort Systems USA, Inc. (FIX) : Free Stock Analysis Report PulteGroup, Inc. (PHM) : Free Stock Analysis Report Lennar Corporation (LEN) : Free Stock Analysis Report D.R. Horton, Inc. (DHI) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

PulteGroup, Inc. PHM gave investors a mixed second-quarter readout. Earnings and revenues topped expectations, but both fell from the prior year as closings, pricing and margins weakened.The investment case now rests on balance. PHM offers capital returns, a solid balance sheet and modest price-target upside, but growth estimates and margins remain under pressure. Adjusted earnings were $2.48 per share, topping the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.38 by 4.2%. Total revenues of $3.983 billion edged past the consensus mark of $3.980 billion by 0.1%. PulteGroup, Inc. price-eps-surprise | PulteGroup, Inc. Quote The beat did not erase the year-over-year decline. Earnings fell 18.2% from $3.03 per share, while total revenues decreased 9.6% as lower closings and softer average selling prices weighed on results. PHM’s $131 price target compares with a reported share price of $124.67, leaving only modest potential appreciation. That limits the valuation argument, even though the company continues to generate orders and return capital. The stock traded at 11.85 times forward earnings, above the sub-industry’s 10.88 multiple and PHM’s five-year median of 8.33. It still traded well below the broader construction sector and the S&P 500, keeping the valuation picture mixed rather than clearly cheap.D.R. Horton DHI and Lennar Corporation LEN remain relevant comparisons because both operate as national homebuilders facing similar affordability and margin pressures. D.R. Horton describes itself as the largest U.S. homebuilder by volume, while Lennar is commonly tracked alongside DHI and PHM in homebuilding comparisons. Current projections call for 2026 revenues of $16.404 billion, down from $17.312 billion in 2025. Expected earnings are $10.01 per share, compared with $11.44 in 2025. Estimates point to improvement in 2027, with revenues projected at $17.045 billion and earnings at $11.09 per share. The timing and durability of that recovery are central to whether PHM’s valuation can become more appealing. PHM repurchased 3.1 million shares for $373 million in the second quarter. First-half repurchases totaled 5.5 million shares, or roughly 3% of outstanding shares, for $681 million. The company maintained a quarterly dividend of 26 cents per share and had $1.8 billion remaining under its repurchase authorization. It is also funding land investment, though first-half operating cash flow fell to $176.8 million from $421.7 million as inventories increased. PulteGroup ended June with $1.38 billion in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash. Its debt-to-capital ratio was 12.3%, while net debt-to-capital was 3.3%, giving the company financial flexibility in a softer housing cycle. The land pipeline also supports flexibility. PHM controlled about 228,000 lots, with 55% held through option agreements, limiting upfront ownership exposure when demand is uncertain. The bottom line is that PHM looks more balanced than broadly attractive. The earnings beat, buybacks and balance sheet help, but declining estimates and margin compression keep the risk-reward selective.PHM currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), with a Value Score of B, Momentum Score of B and VGM Score of B. Those grades provide positive near-term signals, while the Growth Score of D reflects weaker projected earnings and sales trends. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.The stock may suit investors focused on disciplined capital returns and balance-sheet strength. Investors prioritizing immediate growth may need clearer evidence that earnings, revenues and margins are stabilizing. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report PulteGroup, Inc. (PHM) : Free Stock Analysis Report Lennar Corporation (LEN) : Free Stock Analysis Report D.R. Horton, Inc. (DHI) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

NVR, Inc. NVR reported second-quarter 2026 results, with earnings and Homebuilding revenues missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Earnings and Homebuilding revenues also declined on a year-over-year basis.The quarter reflected stronger order activity and a lower cancellation rate, but fewer settlements, softer pricing and margin pressure weighed on results. Backlog units increased 9% year over year, while Homebuilding gross margin contracted amid higher lot costs, affordability challenges and land deposit impairments.Following the results, NVR stock slipped 3.1% during yesterday’s trading hours. The company reported earnings of $83.96 per share, down 22.6% year over year and missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $94.82 by 11.5%. NVR, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | NVR, Inc. Quote Homebuilding revenues of $2.28 billion also missed the consensus mark of $2.41 billion by 5.2%. Revenues declined 10.5% year over year from $2.55 billion, reflecting lower settlement volumes and a decrease in the average settlement price. Consolidated revenues (Homebuilding & Mortgage Banking fees combined) amounted to $2.33 billion, down 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Homebuilding revenues decreased to $2.28 billion from $2.55 billion in the prior-year quarter. Settlements fell 8% to 5,058 units from 5,475 units, limiting revenue generation during the period. Our model predicted settlements to decline 6.7% year over year to 5,107 units.The average settlement price declined 3% year over year to $450,700. The combination of fewer closings and a lower average price weighed on the segment’s top-line performance. Our estimate for the metric was $471,500. Homebuilding gross margin contracted to 19.2% from 21.5% a year ago. Profitability was pressured by higher lot costs, continued affordability challenges and weak consumer sentiment, which led to increased pricing pressure. Our estimate for the metric was 18.8%.The quarter also included approximately $21.7 million of contract land deposit impairments. Consequently, homebuilding income before taxes declined 30% year over year to $293.2 million. Mortgage closed loan production declined 13% year over year to $1.35 billion from $1.56 billion. Mortgage banking fees decreased to $46.6 million from $50.5 million.Mortgage banking income before taxes fell 14% to $25.4 million from $29.6 million. The capture rate, which represents the percentage of NVR homebuyers using the company’s mortgage services, decreased to 85% from 87%. New orders, net of cancellations, increased 9% year over year to 5,885 units. Growth was led by the South East, where orders rose to 2,228 units from 1,953 units, while Mid Atlantic orders increased to 2,081 units from 1,930 units.The average sales price of new orders declined 5% to $437,100. Our model predicted the ASP of new orders at $457,300. However, the cancellation rate improved to 14.9% from 16.5%, suggesting that a greater proportion of signed contracts remained intact during the quarter. Backlog totaled 10,998 units as of June 30, 2026, up 9% from 10,069 units a year earlier. The dollar value of backlog increased 5% to $4.99 billion.The average backlog price declined to $453,900 from $472,100. Average active communities increased to 442 from 426, expanding the company’s selling footprint while stronger order activity supported the year-over-year backlog increase. Homebuilding cash and cash equivalents were $1.09 billion as of June 30, 2026, compared with $1.88 billion at the end of 2025. Homebuilding inventory increased to $2.24 billion from $1.72 billion during the same period. Mortgage banking cash and cash equivalents were $50.9 million versus $32.6 million at year-end.NVR repurchased 54,716 shares during the quarter for an aggregate cost of $357.8 million. Shares outstanding declined to 2.68 million from 2.88 million a year earlier, helping offset part of the effect of lower net income on per-share earnings. Currently, NVR carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.PulteGroup, Inc. PHM reported better-than-expected second-quarter 2026 results, with adjusted earnings and total revenues topping the Zacks Consensus Estimate, but declining year over year. The quarterly results reflect reduced home-closing volumes, softer average selling prices (ASP) and margin compression.PulteGroup ended the quarter with a backlog of 10,966 homes, up 1.7% from the prior-year level. Backlog units increased in the Northeast, Florida, Midwest and Texas, while the Southeast and West reported declines. The value of homes in backlog slipped 0.6% to $6.80 billion. The divergence between higher units and lower value indicates that the average value of homes in backlog declined year over year, consistent with PHM’s broader pricing pressure.D.R. Horton, Inc. DHI reported third-quarter fiscal 2026 earnings of $3.20 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.99 by 7%. Revenues of $9.23 billion also surpassed the consensus mark of $9.19 billion by 0.5%. On a year-over-year basis, earnings declined 4.8%, while revenues increased marginally.DHI’s earnings and revenue beat was driven by higher home-closing volumes, resilient home sales margins, disciplined management of pricing and incentives, and contributions from the Rental, Forestar and Financial Services businesses. However, lower profitability, elevated incentives and cautious consumer demand continued to weigh on results. D.R. Horton now expects fiscal 2026 consolidated revenues of $32.5-$33 billion, down from $33.5-$34.5 billion expected earlier.Lennar Corporation LEN reported mixed second-quarter fiscal 2026 results, with adjusted earnings topping the Zacks Consensus Estimate while revenues missed the same. Year over year, both metrics declined, given ongoing softness in housing demand and a lower ASP for homes delivered.LEN’s Homebuilding revenues declined 2% year over year to $7.62 billion from $7.84 billion, with home deliveries increasing 2% to 20,519 homes from 20,131 homes a year ago. Backlog at quarter-end increased to 16,818 homes from 15,538 homes. For the third quarter of fiscal 2026, Lennar expects home deliveries in the range of 20,500-21,500 and new orders between 21,000 and 22,000 homes. Gross margin on home sales is expected to be approximately 16%. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report NVR, Inc. (NVR) : Free Stock Analysis Report PulteGroup, Inc. (PHM) : Free Stock Analysis Report Lennar Corporation (LEN) : Free Stock Analysis Report D.R. Horton, Inc. (DHI) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

United Rentals, Inc. URI reported solid second-quarter 2026 results, with adjusted earnings per share and total revenues beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate and increasing year over year.Record rental revenues, higher fleet productivity and robust specialty demand supported the results. Fleet productivity improved 3.4% year over year. URI stock gained 8.3% during yesterday’s after-hours, following the earnings release. URI posted adjusted earnings of $12.76 per share, up 21.9% from $10.47 a year ago and surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $11.67 by 9.3%. United Rentals, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | United Rentals, Inc. Quote Total revenues advanced 11.8% to $4.41 billion and topped the consensus mark of $4.24 billion by 4.1%. Rental revenues increased 12.7% year over year to a quarterly record of $3.85 billion. Average original equipment at cost, or OEC, rose 7.1%. Owned equipment rental revenues increased 9% to $2.99 billion from $2.75 billion. Re-rent revenues rose 46.7% to $88 million, while ancillary and other rental revenues advanced 26.2% to $770 million.Sales of rental equipment increased 4.1% to $330 million. Sales of new equipment rose 14.7% to $86 million, contractor supplies sales increased 7.3% to $44 million and service and other revenues grew 6.3% to $101 million. General Rentals segment equipment rental revenues increased 6.6% year over year to $2.42 billion. Equipment rental gross profit rose 8.7% to $865 million, while gross margin expanded 70 basis points to 35.8%.Specialty segment equipment rental revenues rose 24.8% to $1.43 billion. Gross profit increased 21.1% to $636 million, but gross margin contracted 140 basis points to 44.4%. The decline reflected a revenue mix shift toward lower-margin ancillary and re-rent revenues, partly offset by lower labor and benefit expenses as a percentage of revenues. Gross profit increased to $1.73 billion from $1.53 billion. The gross margin improved to 39.3% from 38.9%, as revenue growth outpaced the increase in cost of revenues.Adjusted EBITDA rose 13.6% to a quarterly record of $2.06 billion. The adjusted EBITDA margin expanded 70 basis points to 46.6%, including a $49 million gain from the sale of part of the scaffolding business. Excluding that gain, the margin declined 40 basis points due mainly to the Specialty Rentals mix pressure.Net income increased 21.1% to a second-quarter record of $753 million. Net income margin expanded 130 basis points to 17.1%, including a $37 million after-tax benefit from the scaffolding transaction. For the first six months of 2026, net cash provided by operating activities increased 20.1% to $3.31 billion. Free cash flow declined 4.1% to $1.15 billion, including restructuring-related payments and gross rental equipment purchases of $2.72 billion.URI ended June with liquidity of $3 billion, including $112 million in cash and equivalents. Its net leverage ratio improved to 1.8x from 1.9x at the end of 2025.The company returned $998 million to its shareholders during the first half of 2026, comprising $750 million in share repurchases and $248 million in dividends. United Rentals expects to repurchase $1.5 billion of shares in 2026 and declared a quarterly dividend of $1.97 per share. Management raised its 2026 revenue outlook to $17.5-$17.8 billion from $16.9-$17.4 billion. The adjusted EBITDA forecast increased to $7.98-$8.13 billion from $7.63-$7.88 billion.United Rentals now expects net cash provided by operating activities of $5.85-$6.65 billion, compared with the prior projection of $5.4-$6.2 billion. The free cash flow outlook, excluding restructuring-related payments, was maintained at $2.15-$2.45 billion.Net rental capital expenditures are projected at $3.4-$3.8 billion after gross purchases of $4.85-$5.25 billion. Management cited large-project activity, customer backlogs and year-to-date momentum as factors supporting the higher outlook. Currently, United Rentals carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.PulteGroup, Inc. PHM reported better-than-expected second-quarter 2026 results, with adjusted earnings and total revenues topping the Zacks Consensus Estimate, but declining year over year. The quarterly results reflect reduced home-closing volumes, softer average selling prices (ASP) and margin compression.PulteGroup ended the quarter with a backlog of 10,966 homes, up 1.7% from the prior-year level. Backlog units increased in the Northeast, Florida, Midwest and Texas, while the Southeast and West reported declines. The value of homes in backlog slipped 0.6% to $6.80 billion. The divergence between higher units and lower value indicates that the average value of homes in backlog declined year over year, consistent with PHM’s broader pricing pressure.D.R. Horton, Inc. DHI reported third-quarter fiscal 2026 earnings of $3.20 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.99 by 7%. Revenues of $9.23 billion also surpassed the consensus mark of $9.19 billion by 0.5%. On a year-over-year basis, earnings declined 4.8%, while revenues increased marginally.DHI’s earnings and revenue beat was driven by higher home-closing volumes, resilient home sales margins, disciplined management of pricing and incentives, and contributions from the Rental, Forestar and Financial Services businesses. However, lower profitability, elevated incentives and cautious consumer demand continued to weigh on results. D.R. Horton now expects fiscal 2026 consolidated revenues of $32.5-$33 billion, down from $33.5-$34.5 billion expected earlier.Lennar Corporation LEN reported mixed second-quarter fiscal 2026 results, with adjusted earnings topping the Zacks Consensus Estimate while revenues missed the same. Year over year, both metrics declined, given ongoing softness in housing demand and a lower ASP for homes delivered.LEN’s Homebuilding revenues declined 2% year over year to $7.62 billion from $7.84 billion, with home deliveries increasing 2% to 20,519 homes from 20,131 homes a year ago. Backlog at quarter-end increased to 16,818 homes from 15,538 homes. For the third quarter of fiscal 2026, Lennar expects home deliveries in the range of 20,500-21,500 and new orders between 21,000 and 22,000 homes. Gross margin on home sales is expected to be approximately 16%. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report United Rentals, Inc. (URI) : Free Stock Analysis Report PulteGroup, Inc. (PHM) : Free Stock Analysis Report Lennar Corporation (LEN) : Free Stock Analysis Report D.R. Horton, Inc. (DHI) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research