Lennar Reports Q4 EPS $0.16 vs $0.17 Est; Revenues $952.7M vs $913.95M Est
Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN) today reported results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year ended November 30, 2011. Fourth quarter net earnings attributable to Lennar in 2011 were $30.3 million, or $0.16 per diluted share, compared to fourth quarter net earnings attributable to Lennar in 2010 of $32.0 million, or $0.17 per diluted share. Net earnings attributable to Lennar for the year ended November 30, 2011 were $92.2 million, or $0.48 per diluted share, compared to net earnings attributable to Lennar for the year ended November 30, 2010 of $95.3 million, or $0.51 per diluted share.
Stuart Miller, Chief Executive Officer of Lennar Corporation, said, "We are pleased to report EPS of $0.16 for our fourth fiscal quarter of 2011, making this our seventh consecutive quarter of profitability. Despite operating in a challenging real estate market, we achieved profitability in all of our business segments."
"During the quarter, we continued to manage our homebuilding business carefully with tight controls over our costs and a focus on improving our gross margins. We benefited greatly from our strategic capital investments in new higher margin communities, which helped us produce a 21.6% gross margin, excluding valuation adjustments, in the fourth quarter."
Mr. Miller continued, "As we come to the end of 2011 and head into 2012, we have seen the market start to stabilize, driven by a combination of low home prices and low interest rates, making the decision to purchase a new home more attractive, compared to the heated rental market. These factors are reflected in our new orders and sales backlog, which increased 20% and 35%, respectively, from the prior year quarter."
"On the Rialto side of our business, our first real estate fund successfully raised $700 million and is now contributing management fees and investment income to our bottom line results. We continue to see significant opportunities to invest in distressed assets for our Rialto business."
Mr. Miller concluded, "Our balance sheet strength will allow us to capitalize on future opportunities as they present themselves, and we believe that our Homebuilding and Rialto segments are well positioned to lead the way to a third consecutive profitable year in 2012."
