Lennar Beats Wall Street's Expectations

News of Lennar's profitable third quarter Monday hit home building like a cool autumn breeze after a hot, long summer: refreshing and welcome. "Our third quarter marks the end of what has been, by all accounts, a long and difficult summer quarter in the housing market," CEO Stuart Miller told analysts Monday. "Against this rather difficult backdrop, we are pleased that our third-quarter results represent a continuation of Lennar's return to profitability." The market continues to be "rocky and sloppy," the end of the home buyer credit has been "more impactful than anticipated, and "for the time being, the entire home builder edifice has been vilified," Miller told analysts Monday morning. Still, Miller expressed hope that after the midterm elections that the market's volatility would subside. "There are real buyers out there," he said. "They are just taking additional time to make their home buying." Lennar beat or met market expectations on all its major metrics. The company delivered 2,950 homes in the quarter ended July 31, up 10% over the same quarter last year. Net earnings of $30 million ($0.16 per share) was a strong improvement over last year's third-quarter loss of $171.6 million (-0.97) a share.

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