Meritage Homes Corporation Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

INCOME TAXES

INCOME TAXES

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2018

Components of income tax expense are as follows (in thousands):



	Years Ended December 31,
	2018		2017		2016
Current taxes:
Federal	$	37,926	$	76,988	$	55,547
State	9,162		8,006		7,075
	47,088		84,994		62,622
Deferred taxes:
Federal	6,687		18,916		4,064
State	2,147		354		1,833
	8,834		19,270		5,897
Total	$	55,922	$	104,264	$	68,519

Income taxes differ for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2017 and 2016, from the amounts computed using the expected federal statutory income tax rate of 21%, 35% and 35%, respectively, as a result of the following (in thousands):



	Years Ended December 31,
	2018			2017			2016
Expected taxes at current federal statutory income tax rate	$	59,483		$	86,632		$	76,321
State income taxes, net of federal tax benefit	8,934			5,434			5,791
Tax Act revaluation of deferred tax balances	(2,741		)	19,687			—
Manufacturing deduction	—			(7,580		)	(6,708		)
Federal tax credits	(10,330		)	(484		)	(7,229		)
Non-deductible costs and other	576			575			344
Income tax expense	$	55,922		$	104,264		$	68,519

The effective tax rate was 19.7%, 42.1%, and 31.4% for 2018, 2017 and 2016, respectively. The reduced rate in 2018 is due to lower corporate tax rates under tax reform, extension of the Internal Revenue Code §45L new energy efficient homes credit in early 2018 for homes closed in 2017, additional energy tax credits obtained by qualifying more homes in open prior tax years, and a favorable revaluation adjustment to our deferred tax assets in accordance with the SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118. The 2017 effective tax rate does not include the benefit of 2017 energy tax credits due to the legislation being passed in 2018, but does include additional energy tax credits obtained by qualifying more homes from prior open tax years. The 2017 effective tax rate was favorably impacted by the homebuilder manufacturing deduction which was eliminated in tax reform. The 2017 effective tax rate was unfavorably impacted by a revaluation adjustment to our deferred tax assets as a result of tax reform which was estimated at that time and revised in 2018 when our accounting for the income tax effects of tax reform was completed. The 2016 effective tax rate was favorably impacted by both the homebuilder manufacturing deduction and energy tax credits.

Deferred tax assets and liabilities are netted on our balance sheet by tax jurisdiction. Net overall tax assets for all jurisdictions are grouped and included as a separate asset. Net overall deferred tax liabilities for all jurisdictions are grouped and included in Accrued liabilities. At December 31, 2018, we have a net deferred tax asset of $26.5 million. We also have net deferred tax liabilities of $4.4 million. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are comprised of timing differences (in thousands) as follows:



	At December 31,
	2018		2017
Deferred tax assets:
Real estate	$	11,053	$	14,648
Goodwill	862		2,076
Warranty reserve	5,824		5,499
Wages payable	4,908		5,796
Equity-based compensation	5,153		4,486
Accrued expenses	104		141
Net operating loss carry-forwards	1,005		1,813
Other	4,946		4,982
Total deferred tax assets	33,855		39,441

Deferred tax liabilities:
Deferred revenue	—		462
Prepaids	1,409		759
Fixed assets	5,981		3,058
Total deferred tax liabilities	7,390		4,279

Deferred tax assets, net	26,465		35,162
Other deferred tax liability - state franchise taxes	4,378		4,240

Net deferred tax assets and liabilities	$	22,087	$	30,922

At December 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, we have no unrecognized tax benefits due to the lapse of the statute of limitations and completion of audits for prior years. We believe that our current income tax filing positions and deductions will be sustained on audit and do not anticipate any adjustments that will result in a material change. Our policy is to accrue interest and penalties on unrecognized tax benefits and include them in federal income tax expense.

We determine our deferred tax assets and liabilities in accordance with ASC 740, Income Taxes ("ASC 740"). We evaluate our deferred tax assets, including the benefit from net operating losses ("NOLs"), by jurisdiction to determine if a valuation allowance is required. Companies must assess whether a valuation allowance should be established based on the consideration of all available evidence using a “more likely than not” standard with significant weight being given to evidence that can be objectively verified. This assessment considers, among other matters, the nature, frequency and severity of cumulative losses, forecasts of future profitability, the length of statutory carryforward periods, experiences with operating losses and experiences of utilizing tax credit carryforwards and tax planning alternatives. We have no valuation allowance on our deferred tax assets and NOL carryovers at December 31, 2018.

On December 22, 2017, the President signed into law the Tax Act. Under ASC 740, the effects of new legislation are recognized in the period that includes the date of enactment. The estimated impact on 2017 was to reduce the value of our deferred tax asset by $19.7 million and has been reflected in our effective tax rate reconciliation. The disclosed impact was our most reasonable estimate at that time based on our understanding of the Tax Act as it applied to our business and changed as more information became available. At December 31, 2018, we have completed our accounting for the income tax effects of the Tax Act on our deferred tax assets. In accordance with SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118 and ASC 740, we have revised the valuation of our 2017 deferred tax assets for the impact of the Tax Act based on completion of our 2017 income tax returns during the fourth quarter of 2018. Accordingly, in 2018 we recorded a favorable revaluation adjustment of $2.7 million which was also reflected in our effective tax rate reconciliation.

Our future NOL and deferred tax asset realization depends on sufficient taxable income in the carryforward periods under existing tax laws. Federal NOL carryforwards may be used to offset future taxable income for 20 years. State NOL carryforwards may be used to offset future taxable income for a period of time ranging from 5 to 20 years, depending on the state jurisdiction. At December 31, 2018, we had no remaining un-utilized federal NOL carryforward or federal tax credits. At December 31, 2018, we had tax benefits for state NOL carryforwards of $1.0 million that begin to expire in 2028.

At December 31, 2018, we have a current tax receivable of $2.2 million, which primarily consists of current federal and state tax accruals, net of estimated tax payments and energy tax credits. This amount is recorded in Other Receivables in the accompanying balance sheet at December 31, 2018.

We conduct business and are subject to tax in the U.S. and several states. With few exceptions, we are no longer subject to U.S. federal, state, or local income tax examinations by taxing authorities for years prior to 2014. We have one state income tax examination covering various years pending resolution at this time.

The tax benefits from NOLs, built-in losses, and tax credits would be materially reduced or potentially eliminated if we experience an “ownership change” as defined under Internal Revenue Code (“IRC”) §382. Based on our analysis performed as of December 31, 2018 we do not believe that we have experienced an ownership change. As a protective measure, our stockholders held a Special Meeting of Stockholders on February 16, 2009 and approved an amendment to our Articles of Incorporation that restricts certain transfers of our common stock. The amendment is intended to help us avoid an unintended ownership change and thereby preserve the value of any tax benefit for future utilization.