Meritage Homes(US:MTH)2020-10-22 16:06Financial Performance - The company reported a 56% increase in net earnings in 3Q20, reaching $109 million, compared to $70 million in 3Q19 [24, 26] - Diluted EPS increased by 59% to $2.84 in 3Q20, compared to $1.79 in 3Q19 [26] - Home closing revenue increased by 21% to $1.133 billion in 3Q20, compared to $939 million in 3Q19 [26] - Home closing gross margin improved by 170 bps to 21.5% in 3Q20, compared to 19.8% in 3Q19 [26] Sales and Orders - Orders increased by 71% in 3Q20 [11] - The company secured approximately 9,000 new lots in 3Q20 [15, 20] Balance Sheet and Liquidity - The company's net debt-to-capital ratio was 15.7% as of September 30, 2020, compared to 26.2% as of December 31, 2019 [30] - The company had $610 million in cash as of September 30, 2020 [28, 31] Land Investment - Land and development spending was $299 million in 3Q20, compared to $275 million in 3Q19 [34] - The company controlled 47,875 total lots as of September 30, compared to 37,300 in 3Q19 [34] Guidance - The company projects 11,200-11,500 home closings for full year 2020 [37] - The company projects $4.2-4.4 billion in home closing revenue for full year 2020 [37]