Exhibit 99.1
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Contacts:
Brent Anderson, VP Investor Relations
 
 
 
(972) 580-6360 (office)
 
 
 
Brent.Anderson@meritagehomes.com

Meritage Homes reports second quarter 2015 EPS of $0.70,
an 18% increase in home closing revenue and 21% increase in home orders

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., July 29, 2015 - Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE: MTH), a leading U.S. homebuilder, announced today second quarter results for the period ended June 30, 2015.

Summary Operating Results (unaudited)
(Dollars in thousands, except per share amounts)
 
 
Three Months Ended June 30,
 
Six Months Ended June 30,
 
 
2015
 
2014
 
%Chg
 
2015
 
2014
 
%Chg
Homes closed (units)
 
1,556

 
1,368

 
14
 %
 
2,891

 
2,477

 
17
 %
Home closing revenue
 
$
591,027

 
$
502,800

 
18
 %
 
$
1,108,300

 
$
908,579

 
22
 %
Average sales price - closings
 
$
380

 
$
368

 
3
 %
 
$
383

 
$
367

 
5
 %
Home orders (units)
 
1,986

 
1,647

 
21
 %
 
3,965

 
3,172

 
25
 %
Home order value
 
$
775,815

 
$
618,435

 
25
 %
 
$
1,558,627

 
$
1,173,475

 
33
 %
Average sales price - orders
 
$
391

 
$
375

 
4
 %
 
$
393

 
$
370

 
6
 %
Ending backlog (units)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
3,188

 
2,548

 
25
 %
Ending backlog value
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
$
1,296,779

 
$
951,568

 
36
 %
Average sales price - backlog
 


 


 

 
$
407

 
$
373

 
9
 %
Net earnings
 
$
29,133

 
$
35,079

 
(17
)%
 
$
45,533

 
$
60,456

 
(25
)%
Diluted EPS
 
$
0.70

 
$
0.85

 
(18
)%
 
$
1.10

 
$
1.48

 
(26
)%




1


MANAGEMENT COMMENTS
We achieved significant year-over-year growth in the second quarter of 2015, with an 18% increase in home closing revenue, a 21% increase in orders and a 36% increase in our total backlog value,” said Steven J. Hilton, chairman and chief executive officer of Meritage Homes. “Our earnings of $0.70 per diluted share for the second quarter of 2015 were lower than last year’s $0.85 per diluted share due to a decline in home closing margins from last year’s unusually high level of 21.9%.
“Additionally, our second quarter results were significantly stronger than our first quarter this year, with a 75% increase in earnings per diluted share, driven by a 14% increase in home closing revenue and a 19.3% home closing gross margin, compared to our first quarter 2015 margin of 18.5%. We believe we are on track to achieve our projected target margin of approximately 20% for the full year 2015.”
Mr. Hilton continued, “We’ve more than doubled our actively selling communities in the East region over the last year, which drove most of the growth in our second quarter orders, closings and backlog. Our West and Central regions were impacted by abnormally heavy and persistent rain in Texas and Colorado during much of the second quarter, which caused unavoidable delays in starting and completing homes. Our team is working closely with our contractors to catch up as soon as possible. Even so, we estimate that approximately 200 home closings that were expected this year will be pushed out until next year. As a result, we're adjusting our projections for 2015 home closing revenue to $2.65-2.75 billion -- an increase of 24-28% over 2014 -- compared to our previous expectation for 25-30% growth, and we're estimating earnings per diluted share of $3.60-3.90 for the year, compared to our previous full year guidance of $3.75-4.00.
“The housing market continues to benefit from job growth, increasing household formations, consumer confidence and low interest rates. Considering those factors and our broadened position across many of the best housing markets in the country, our long-term outlook is for continued growth and earnings expansion for Meritage Homes,” concluded Mr. Hilton.
SECOND QUARTER RESULTS
•
Net earnings were $29.1 million or $0.70 per diluted share for the second quarter of 2015, compared to $35.1 million or $0.85 per diluted share in the second quarter of 2014, resulting from higher home closing revenue offset by lower gross margins on closings.
•
Home closing revenue increased 18% over the prior year’s second quarter, resulting from a 14% increase in home closings and a 3% increase in the average price of homes closed during the quarter. East region home closing revenue grew 77% and the Central region grew 9% year over year, while West region home closing

2


revenue was down 5% due to a 15% decline in Arizona, where our beginning backlog was reduced by weaker demand and orders in the latter half of 2014.
•
Home closing gross margin improved sequentially to 19.3% in the second quarter of 2015, up from 18.5% in the first quarter of 2015, though lower than the 21.9% achieved a year ago. High margins in 2014 were driven by home price appreciation that exceeded cost inflation in 2013 through the first half of 2014. Purchase accounting adjustments from the acquisition of Legendary Communities last August reduced second quarter total home closing gross margin by 28 bps.
•
General and administrative expenses as a percentage of total second quarter closing revenue decreased slightly to 4.6% from 4.9% in 2015 compared to 2014, while commissions and other sales costs as a percentage of home closing revenue rose slightly in the second quarter to 7.6% in 2015 from 7.2% in 2014.
•
Interest expense increased by $3.2 million year over year to 0.8% of second quarter 2015 total closing revenue, compared to 0.3% of second quarter closing revenue in 2014, primarily due to intra-quarter borrowings on the credit facility and the issuance of $200 million of new senior notes in early June 2015.
•
The effective tax rate was 30% in the second quarter of 2015 compared to 36% in 2014. The difference was primarily due to a tax benefit of approximately $1.3 million in this year's second quarter for increases in estimated federal energy tax credits from prior years’ home closings.
•
Total order value grew 25% to $775.8 million in the second quarter of 2015, compared to $618.4 million in the prior year. Total orders increased 21% and average sales prices rose 4% year over year. The increases were primarily driven by community count growth in the East and West regions over the past year, as well as stronger demand in the West, including Arizona. The two regions grew total order value by 81% and 28%, respectively. Higher sales per average active community in Texas were offset by fewer actively selling communities in 2015 compared to 2014, though Texas is rebuilding and has added seven net new communities in 2015.
•
Average orders per active community during the quarter slowed to 8.5 in the second quarter of 2015 compared to 9.0 in 2014, primarily due to the East region, where average orders per community were 6.7 in the second quarter of 2015, compared to 9.0 in the second quarter of 2014. Georgia and South Carolina, acquired from Legendary in the third quarter of 2014, have historically operated at a lower sales velocity than Meritage’s other markets, and Florida has also experienced a slower sales pace in 2015.
•
Ending community count at June 30, 2015 was 240, compared to 175 at June 30, 2014. The East region added 59 net new communities including 36 in Georgia and South Carolina combined, associated with the acquisition

3


of Legendary Communities in August 2014. The West region grew by nine net new communities over the prior year’s quarter-end count.
•
Ending backlog value at June 30 was 36% higher in 2015 than in 2014, with 25% more units in backlog and a 9% increase in the average price of orders in backlog.
YEAR TO DATE RESULTS
•
Net earnings were $45.5 million for the first half of 2015, compared to $60.5 million for the first half of 2014, as a 22% increase in revenue year to date was more than offset by lower home closing gross margins.
•
Home closings for the first half of the year increased 17% over 2014, with a 5% increase in average prices.
•
Year-to-date home closing gross margin in 2015 was 18.9%, compared to 22.3% for 2014, which exceeded underwriting target levels of approximately 20% due to a rapid rise in home prices in 2013 and early 2014. In contrast, higher land and construction costs in 2015 were not fully offset by modest home price appreciation this year, resulting in reduced margins. Additionally, 2015 home closing margins were negatively impacted by 32 bps due to purchase accounting adjustments on closings from lots acquired from Legendary.
•
Total commissions and selling expenses were 7.8% of year-to-date 2015 home closing revenue, compared to 7.4% in 2014, while general and administrative expenses were flat at 5.1% of total closing revenue in both years.
BALANCE SHEET
•
The company ended the second quarter of 2015 with $217.0 million in cash and cash equivalents plus investments and securities, compared to $103.3 million at December 31, 2014 and $290.6 million at June 30, 2014. The year-over-year decrease in cash reflects the net impact of increased investments in land and homes under construction, partially offset by the proceeds from a new senior notes offering in June 2015.
•
Real estate assets increased to $2.03 billion at June 30, 2015, compared to $1.88 billion at December 31 and $1.64 billion at June 30, 2014.
•
Net debt-to-capital ratio at quarter-end was 44.1% compared to 42.9% at December 31, 2014 and 37.6% at June 30, 2014.
•
In June 2015, the company issued $200 million of 6.0% senior unsecured notes with a maturity date of June 2025, and also extended the maturity of its $500 million revolving credit facility by one year to July 2019 in order to provide ample liquidity for future growth.

4


•
Total lot supply at the end of the quarter was approximately 29,100, compared to approximately 25,800 a year earlier and 30,300 at year-end 2014. Based on trailing twelve months closings, total lots at June 30, 2015 represented approximately a 4.6 year supply of lots.
CONFERENCE CALL
Management will host a conference call today to discuss the Company's results at 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time (7:30 a.m. Arizona Time). The call will be webcast with an accompanying slideshow available on the "Investor Relations" page of the Company's web site at http://investors.meritagehomes.com. Telephone participants may avoid any delays by pre-registering for the call using the following link to receive a special dial-in number and PIN.
Conference Call registration link: http://dpregister.com/10067831.
Telephone participants who are unable to pre-register may dial in to 866-226-4948 on the day of the call. International dial-in number is 1-412-902-4125.
A replay of the call will be available through August 12, 2015, beginning at 12:00 p.m. ET on July 29, 2015 on the website noted above, or by dialing 877-344-7529, and referencing conference number 10067831. For more information, visit www.meritagehomes.com.





5



Meritage Homes Corporation and Subsidiaries
Consolidated Income Statements
(Unaudited)
(In thousands, except per share data)
 
 
 
Three Months Ended June 30,
 
Six Months Ended June 30,
 
 
2015
 
2014
 
2015
 
2014
Homebuilding:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Home closing revenue
$
591,027

 
$
502,800

 
$
1,108,300

 
$
908,579

 
Land closing revenue
6,774

 
2,804

 
8,213

 
5,370

 
Total closing revenue
597,801

 
505,604

 
1,116,513

 
913,949

 
Cost of home closings
(476,790
)
 
(392,839
)
 
(898,576
)
 
(706,019
)
 
Cost of land closings
(6,262
)
 
(2,762
)
 
(7,547
)
 
(6,355
)
 
Total cost of closings
(483,052
)
 
(395,601
)
 
(906,123
)
 
(712,374
)
 
Home closing gross profit
114,237

 
109,961

 
209,724

 
202,560

 
Land closing gross profit/(loss)
512

 
42

 
666

 
(985
)
 
Total closing gross profit
114,749

 
110,003

 
210,390

 
201,575

Financial Services:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Revenue
2,741

 
2,451

 
5,276

 
4,350

 
Expense
(1,362
)
 
(1,131
)
 
(2,661
)
 
(2,206
)
 
Earnings from financial services unconsolidated entities and other, net
2,757

 
2,297

 
5,301

 
4,498

 
Financial services profit
4,136

 
3,617

 
7,916

 
6,642

Commissions and other sales costs
(45,167
)
 
(36,105
)
 
(86,779
)
 
(67,039
)
General and administrative expenses
(27,650
)
 
(24,571
)
 
(57,300
)
 
(46,242
)
Loss from other unconsolidated entities, net
(169
)
 
(61
)
 
(292
)
 
(230
)
Interest expense
(4,621
)
 
(1,396
)
 
(7,775
)
 
(4,109
)
Other income, net
136

 
3,749

 
551

 
4,397

Earnings before income taxes
41,414

 
55,236

 
66,711

 
94,994

Provision for income taxes
(12,281
)
 
(20,157
)
 
(21,178
)
 
(34,538
)
Net earnings
$
29,133

 
$
35,079

 
$
45,533

 
$
60,456

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Earnings per share:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Basic
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Earnings per share
$
0.73

 
$
0.90

 
$
1.15

 
$
1.55

 
Weighted average shares outstanding
39,648

 
39,118

 
39,520

 
38,904

 
Diluted
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Earnings per share
$
0.70

 
$
0.85

 
$
1.10

 
$
1.48

 
Weighted average shares outstanding
42,145

 
41,598

 
42,079

 
41,487





6




Meritage Homes Corporation and Subsidiaries
Consolidated Balance Sheets
(In thousands)
(unaudited)
 
 
 
June 30, 2015
 
December 31, 2014
Assets:
 
 
 
 
Cash and cash equivalents
 
$
217,021

 
$
103,333

Other receivables
 
64,659

 
56,763

Real estate (1)
 
2,027,064

 
1,877,682

Real estate not owned
 
—

 
4,999

Deposits on real estate under option or contract
 
92,085

 
94,989

Investments in unconsolidated entities
 
10,303

 
10,780

Property and equipment, net
 
33,741

 
32,403

Deferred tax asset
 
65,651

 
64,137

Prepaids, other assets and goodwill
 
76,145

 
71,052

Total assets
 
$
2,586,669

 
$
2,316,138

Liabilities:
 
 
 
 
Accounts payable
 
$
103,145

 
$
83,619

Accrued liabilities
 
137,602

 
154,144

Home sale deposits
 
38,728

 
29,379

Liabilities related to real estate not owned
 
—

 
4,299

Loans payable and other borrowings
 
34,654

 
30,722

Senior and convertible senior notes
 
1,104,202

 
904,486

Total liabilities
 
1,418,331

 
1,206,649

Stockholders' Equity:
 
 
 
 
Preferred stock
 
—

 
—

Common stock
 
397

 
391

Additional paid-in capital
 
552,098

 
538,788

Retained earnings
 
615,843

 
570,310

Total stockholders’ equity
 
1,168,338

 
1,109,489

Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity
 
$
2,586,669

 
$
2,316,138

(1) Real estate – Allocated costs:
 
 
 
 
Homes under contract under construction
 
$
506,004

 
$
328,931

Unsold homes, completed and under construction
 
251,067

 
302,288

Model homes
 
120,981

 
109,614

Finished home sites and home sites under development
 
1,149,012

 
1,136,849

Total real estate
 
$
2,027,064

 
$
1,877,682







7


Supplemental Information and Non-GAAP Financial Disclosures (Dollars in thousands – unaudited):
 
    
 
Three Months Ended June 30,
 
Six Months Ended June 30,
 
2015
 
2014
 
2015
 
2014
Depreciation and amortization
$
3,518

 
$
2,669

 
$
6,729

 
$
5,182

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Summary of Capitalized Interest:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Capitalized interest, beginning of period
$
56,843

 
$
38,701

 
$
54,060

 
$
32,992

Interest incurred
16,526

 
14,382

 
31,808

 
28,638

Interest expensed
(4,621
)
 
(1,396
)
 
(7,775
)
 
(4,109
)
Interest amortized to cost of home and land closings
(9,878
)
 
(7,332
)
 
(19,223
)
 
(13,166
)
Capitalized interest, end of period
$
58,870

 
$
44,355

 
$
58,870

 
$
44,355

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
June 30, 2015
 
December 31, 2014
 
 
 
 
Notes payable and other borrowings
$
1,138,856

 
$
935,208

 
 
 
 
Stockholders' equity
1,168,338

 
1,109,489

 
 
 
 
Total capital
2,307,194

 
2,044,697

 
 
 
 
Debt-to-capital
49.4
%
 
45.7
%
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Notes payable and other borrowings
$
1,138,856

 
$
935,208

 
 
 
 
Less: cash and cash equivalents
(217,021
)
 
(103,333
)
 
 
 
 
Net debt
921,835

 
831,875

 
 
 
 
Stockholders’ equity
1,168,338

 
1,109,489

 
 
 
 
Total net capital
$
2,090,173

 
$
1,941,364

 
 
 
 
Net debt-to-capital
44.1
%
 
42.9
%
 
 
 

 



8


Meritage Homes Corporation and Subsidiaries
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows 
(In thousands) (unaudited)
 
 
Six Months Ended June 30,
 
 
2015
 
2014
Cash flows from operating activities:
 
 
 
 
Net earnings
 
$
45,533

 
$
60,456

Adjustments to reconcile net earnings to net cash used in operating activities:
 
 
 
 
Depreciation and amortization
 
6,729

 
5,182

Stock-based compensation
 
8,465

 
5,264

Excess income tax benefit from stock-based awards
 
(2,012
)
 
(2,194
)
Equity in earnings from unconsolidated entities
 
(5,009
)
 
(4,268
)
Distribution of earnings from unconsolidated entities
 
5,769

 
6,119

Other
 
424

 
3,955

Changes in assets and liabilities:
 
 
 
 
Increase in real estate
 
(144,450
)
 
(229,805
)
Decrease/(increase) in deposits on real estate under option or contract
 
3,604

 
(7,986
)
Increase in receivables, prepaids and other assets
 
(10,346
)
 
(15,121
)
Increase in accounts payable and accrued liabilities
 
4,996

 
2,247

Increase in home sale deposits
 
9,349

 
5,537

Net cash used in operating activities
 
(76,948
)
 
(170,614
)
Cash flows from investing activities:
 
 
 
 
Investments in unconsolidated entities
 
(282
)
 
(233
)
Purchases of property and equipment
 
(7,829
)
 
(11,864
)
Proceeds from sales of property and equipment
 
62

 
146

Maturities of investments and securities
 
—

 
65,388

Payments to purchase investments and securities
 
—

 
(35,614
)
Net cash (used in)/provided by investing activities
 
(8,049
)
 
17,823

Cash flows from financing activities:
 
 
 
 
Repayment of loans payable and other borrowings
 
(3,211
)
 
(4,036
)
Proceeds from issuance of senior notes
 
200,000

 
—

Debt issuance costs
 
(2,955
)
 
—

Proceeds from issuance of common stock, net
 
—

 
110,420

Excess income tax benefit from stock-based awards
 
2,012

 
2,194

Proceeds from stock option exercises
 
2,839

 
707

Net cash provided by financing activities
 
198,685

 
109,285

Net increase/(decrease) in cash and cash equivalents
 
113,688

 
(43,506
)
Beginning cash and cash equivalents
 
103,333

 
274,136

Ending cash and cash equivalents (2)
 
$
217,021

 
$
230,630

 
(2) Ending cash and cash equivalents excludes investments and securities of $59.9 million as of June 30, 2014 .

9


Meritage Homes Corporation and Subsidiaries
Operating Data
(Dollars in thousands) (unaudited)

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Three Months Ended
 
 
June 30, 2015
 
June 30, 2014
 
 
Homes
 
Value
 
Homes
 
Value
Homes Closed:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Arizona
 
229

 
$
71,878

 
252

 
$
84,606

California
 
176

 
95,763

 
185

 
95,067

Colorado
 
113

 
52,133

 
115

 
52,292

West Region
 
518

 
219,774

 
552

 
231,965

Texas
 
509

 
174,397

 
524

 
159,562

Central Region
 
509

 
174,397

 
524

 
159,562

Florida
 
210

 
91,491

 
155

 
60,732

Georgia
 
42

 
13,057

 
—

 
—

North Carolina
 
135

 
50,214

 
89

 
36,127

South Carolina
 
91

 
27,258

 
—

 
—

Tennessee
 
51

 
14,836

 
48

 
14,414

East Region
 
529

 
196,856

 
292

 
111,273

Total
 
1,556

 
$
591,027

 
1,368

 
$
502,800

Homes Ordered:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Arizona
 
320

 
$
102,714

 
239

 
$
77,372

California
 
237

 
131,814

 
205

 
107,608

Colorado
 
181

 
84,421

 
140

 
64,491

West Region
 
738

 
318,949

 
584

 
249,471

Texas
 
635

 
224,195

 
718

 
240,463

Central Region
 
635

 
224,195

 
718

 
240,463

Florida
 
218

 
92,663

 
180

 
67,891

Georgia
 
53

 
16,690

 
—

 
—

North Carolina
 
181

 
72,667

 
102

 
43,062

South Carolina
 
99

 
29,473

 
—

 
—

Tennessee
 
62

 
21,178

 
63

 
17,548

East Region
 
613

 
232,671

 
345

 
128,501

Total
 
1,986

 
$
775,815

 
1,647

 
$
618,435




















10


Meritage Homes Corporation and Subsidiaries
Operating Data
(Dollars in thousands) (unaudited)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Six Months Ended
 
 
June 30, 2015
 
June 30, 2014
 
 
Homes
 
Value
 
Homes
 
Value
Homes Closed:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Arizona
 
415

 
$
134,479

 
463

 
$
156,388

California
 
329

 
182,186

 
350

 
174,994

Colorado
 
241

 
109,987

 
204

 
92,214

West Region
 
985

 
426,652

 
1,017

 
423,596

Texas
 
949

 
326,984

 
927

 
277,761

Central Region
 
949

 
326,984

 
927

 
277,761

Florida
 
387

 
164,322

 
318

 
127,829

Georgia
 
94

 
28,515

 
—

 
—

North Carolina
 
224

 
85,189

 
144

 
58,706

South Carolina
 
167

 
51,818

 
—

 
—

Tennessee
 
85

 
24,820

 
71

 
20,687

East Region
 
957

 
354,664

 
533

 
207,222

Total
 
2,891

 
$
1,108,300

 
2,477

 
$
908,579

Homes Ordered:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Arizona
 
608

 
$
193,305

 
467

 
$
153,019

California
 
547

 
309,911

 
442

 
227,660

Colorado
 
370

 
169,828

 
264

 
119,249

West Region
 
1,525

 
673,044

 
1,173

 
499,928

Texas
 
1,192

 
409,327

 
1,352

 
432,694

Central Region
 
1,192

 
409,327

 
1,352

 
432,694

Florida
 
466

 
201,520

 
353

 
132,506

Georgia
 
130

 
40,908

 
—

 
—

North Carolina
 
329

 
134,292

 
183

 
77,081

South Carolina
 
195

 
59,001

 
—

 
—

Tennessee
 
128

 
40,535

 
111

 
31,266

East Region
 
1,248

 
476,256

 
647

 
240,853

Total
 
3,965

 
$
1,558,627

 
3,172

 
$
1,173,475

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Order Backlog:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Arizona
 
385

 
$
125,044

 
282

 
$
93,870

California
 
430

 
251,688

 
317

 
160,129

Colorado
 
397

 
181,474

 
262

 
119,419

West Region
 
1,212

 
558,206

 
861

 
373,418

Texas
 
1,101

 
391,384

 
1,217

 
400,588

Central Region
 
1,101

 
391,384

 
1,217

 
400,588

Florida
 
316

 
139,768

 
243

 
93,949

Georgia
 
89

 
28,977

 
—

 
—

North Carolina
 
290

 
117,271

 
147

 
61,593

South Carolina
 
98

 
33,303

 
—

 
—

Tennessee
 
82

 
27,870

 
80

 
22,020

East Region
 
875

 
347,189

 
470

 
177,562

Total
 
3,188

 
$
1,296,779

 
2,548

 
$
951,568



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Meritage Homes Corporation and Subsidiaries
Operating Data
(unaudited)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Three Months Ended
 
 
June 30, 2015
 
June 30, 2014
 
 
Ending
 
Average
 
Ending
 
Average
Active Communities:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Arizona
 
43

 
43.5

 
42

 
41.5

California
 
20

 
20.5

 
15

 
16.0

Colorado
 
16

 
16.0

 
13

 
13.0

West Region
 
79

 
80.0

 
70

 
70.5

Texas
 
66

 
63.5

 
69

 
73.0

Central Region
 
66

 
63.5

 
69

 
73.0

Florida
 
30

 
28.0

 
18

 
17.5

Georgia
 
16

 
14.5

 
N/A

 
N/A

North Carolina
 
25

 
24.0

 
13

 
15.5

South Carolina
 
20

 
20.0

 
N/A

 
N/A

Tennessee
 
4

 
4.5

 
5

 
5.5

East Region
 
95

 
91.0

 
36

 
38.5

Total
 
240

 
234.5

 
175

 
182.0



 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Six Months Ended
 
 
June 30, 2015
 
June 30, 2014
 
 
Ending
 
Average
 
Ending
 
Average
Active Communities:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Arizona
 
43

 
42.0

 
42

 
41.0

California
 
20

 
22.0

 
15

 
18.5

Colorado
 
16

 
16.5

 
13

 
13.5

West Region
 
79

 
80.5

 
70

 
73.0

Texas
 
66

 
62.5

 
69

 
69.5

Central Region
 
66

 
62.5

 
69

 
69.5

Florida
 
30

 
29.5

 
18

 
19.0

Georgia
 
16

 
14.5

 
N/A

 
N/A

North Carolina
 
25

 
23.0

 
13

 
15.0

South Carolina
 
20

 
20.0

 
N/A

 
N/A

Tennessee
 
4

 
4.5

 
5

 
5.0

East Region
 
95

 
91.5

 
36

 
39.0

Total
 
240

 
234.5

 
175

 
181.5




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About Meritage Homes Corporation
Meritage Homes is the eighth-largest public homebuilder in the United States, based on homes closed in 2014. Meritage builds and sells single-family homes for first-time, move-up, luxury and active adult buyers across the Western, Southern and Southeastern United States. Meritage builds in markets including Sacramento, San Francisco's East Bay, the Central Valley and Orange County, California; Houston, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Austin and San Antonio, Texas; Phoenix/Scottsdale, Green Valley and Tucson, Arizona; Denver and Fort Collins, Colorado; Orlando and Tampa, Florida; Raleigh and Charlotte, North Carolina; Greenville-Spartanburg and York County, South Carolina; Nashville, Tennessee and Atlanta, Georgia.
Meritage has designed and built more than 85,000 homes in its 30-year history, and has a reputation for its distinctive style, quality construction, and positive customer experience. Meritage is the industry leader in energy-efficient homebuilding and has received the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year for Sustained Excellence Award in 2013, 2014 and 2015, for innovation and industry leadership in energy efficient homebuilding. Meritage was the first national homebuilder to be 100 percent ENERGY STAR qualified in every home it builds, and far exceeds ENERGY STAR standards today.
For more information, visit investors.meritagehomes.com.
This press release and the accompanying comments during our analyst call contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements include management's expectations with respect to 2015 home closing gross margins, that a number of closings in Texas and Colorado may be delayed into 2016, estimates for home closing revenue and earnings per diluted share for 2015, and that the company expects to continue to grow revenue and expand earnings.
Such statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of Company management, and current market conditions, which are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. The Company makes no commitment, and disclaims any duty, to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect future events or changes in these expectations. Meritage's business is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties. As a result of those risks and uncertainties, the Company's stock and note prices may fluctuate dramatically. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the following: the availability of finished lots and undeveloped land; interest rates and changes in the availability and pricing of residential mortgages; fluctuations in the availability and cost of labor; changes in or our failure to comply with tax laws that adversely impact our homebuyers; the ability of our potential buyers to sell their

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existing homes; cancellation rates and home prices in our markets; weakness in the homebuilding market resulting from an unexpected setback in the current economic recovery due to lower oil prices or other factors; inflation in the cost of materials used to develop communities and construct homes; the adverse effect of slower order absorption rates; potential write-downs or write-offs of assets; a change to the feasibility of projects under option or contract that could result in the write-down or write-off of option deposits; our ability to successfully integrate acquired companies and achieve anticipated benefits from these acquisitions; our potential exposure to natural disasters; competition; construction defect and home warranty claims; adverse legal rulings; our success in prevailing on contested tax positions; our ability to obtain performance bonds in connection with our development work; the loss of key personnel; changes in, or our failure to comply with, laws and regulations; limitations of our geographic diversification; fluctuations in quarterly operating results; our financial leverage and level of indebtedness and our ability to take certain actions because of restrictions contained in the indentures for our senior notes and our ability to raise additional capital when and if needed; our credit ratings; successful integration of future acquisitions; our compliance with government regulations and the effect of legislative or other initiatives that seek to restrain growth of new housing construction or similar measures; acts of war; the replication of our "Green" technologies by our competitors; our exposure to information technology failures and security breaches; and other factors identified in documents filed by the company with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including those set forth in our Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014 and subsequent quarterly reports on Forms 10-Q under the caption "Risk Factors," which can be found on our website.




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