Meritage Homes Corporation (NYSE: MTH) experienced a significant after-hours plunge of 5.21% following the release of its first-quarter 2026 financial results. The downturn came as the homebuilder reported earnings and revenue that fell short of analyst expectations and provided cautious guidance for the full year.

The company reported adjusted earnings per share of $0.86 for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, missing the consensus estimate of $1.01 by 14.85%. This represents a 49.71% decrease from the $1.71 per share reported in the same period last year. Revenue also declined, coming in at $1.117 billion compared to the expected $1.196 billion, marking a 17.75% year-over-year decrease.

Management attributed the weaker performance to challenging macroeconomic conditions, citing a severe winter storm in January and military operations in Iran during the quarter that negatively impacted consumer sentiment and mortgage rates. The company noted it needed to utilize higher-than-anticipated sales incentives to capture demand, which pressured average sales prices and margins. For the full year 2026, Meritage Homes updated its guidance, expecting home closing volume and revenue to be at or within 5% of 2025 results.