RayJay Downgrades Builders with Finger-in-Wind Call...
Homebuilders downgraded on negative investor sentiment (CTX, LEN, TOL, PHM) By Tomi Kilgore
NEW YORK (CBS.MW) - Raymond James downgraded the homebuilder stocks it covered due to growing concerns over rising interest rates and to deteriorating general stock market conditions. Included in the downgrades were Centex (CTX) , Lennar (LEN) , Toll Brothers (TOL) and Pulte Homes (PHM) . "We are becoming increasingly concerned, in light of the recent sharp move [higher] in Treasury yields, that negative investor sentiment will make stock outperformance more challenging in spite of the fact that fundamental performance will likely continue to outpace the broader economy," analyst Paul Puryear said in a note to clients. "Negative sentiment is likely to be exacerbated in the near term as investors point to decelerating, albeit still robust, housing data points." The yield on the 10-year Treasury note ($TNX) was unchanged at 4.78 percent, but had reached a 22-month high of 4.799 percent in intraday trading.