Mortgage rates have risen for four consecutive weeks
Unfortunately for home buyers, mortgage rates are sharply higher in October, with the 30-year rate averaging 6.92% as of Oct. 23 -- marking a fourth-straight weekly rise. Though it's too late to tell, new home sales will likely take a hit after surging last month thanks to lower rates.
More specifically, sales of newly built homes jumped 4.1% to a higher-than-expected annual rate of 738,000 in September -- the fastest pace since May 2023. With this backdrop in mind, we're checking in on two homebuilding stocks today.
Shares of PulteGroup Inc (NYSE:PHM) were last seen up 2.1% at $135.87, after quite a busy week on the charts. The stock is fresh off an Oct. 22, 7.2% post-earnings drop -- its largest single-day percentage loss since June 2022, but before that hit an Oct. 21 record high of $149.47. Sine the start of the year, the equity is up 31.7%.
Lennar Corp (NYSE:LEN) stock is behaving similarly on the charts, though its record high of $193.80 is a bit further back on Sept. 19. Up 1.8% at $175.75 at last glance, the stock is still firmly in the red for the week, just like its peer. Since the start of the year, LEN is up 18.1%.
Looking ahead, next week will bring plenty of housing data, including the S&P Case-Shiller home price index and pending home sales.