DHI vs MTH: Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

Same yardstick, side by side (as of August 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.

The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. DHI and MTH share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.

This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined DHI and MTH exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

D.R. Horton is the largest homebuilder in the United States by volume, building and selling homes across affordable, move-up, luxury, and active-adult segments under brands including D.R. Horton, Express Homes, Emerald Homes, and Freedom Homes. The company operates in dozens of states and hundreds of markets, focusing heavily on entry-level and first-time buyers, where demand has been most durable. D.R. Horton makes money primarily by acquiring and developing land, constructing homes, and selling them to buyers, with additional revenue from its financial-services arm (mortgage origination and title services) and from Forestar, its majority-owned residential lot-development company. A hallmark of its strategy is an asset-light land approach, using options and lot-banking to reduce the capital tied up in raw land. Scale gives D.R. Horton purchasing power with suppliers and subcontractors, helping it compete on price and absorb cyclical swings. It is headquartered in Arlington, Texas, and is a member of the S&P 500.

Full DHI guide

Meritage Homes builds, markets, and sells single-family homes aimed at entry-level and first move-up buyers across roughly a dozen states in the Sun Belt and West, including Texas, Arizona, Florida, the Carolinas, Georgia, Colorado, and California. It leans on a spec-heavy, energy-efficient building model and a fast backlog-conversion strategy (nearly 70% of Q1 2026 deliveries came from intra-quarter sales), and it also runs a financial services segment offering mortgage, title, and insurance products to its buyers. In 2024 it recorded about $6.3 billion in revenue on 15,611 closings, ranking around the fifth-largest US builder by volume.

Full MTH guide

Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.

• DHI drivers: Structural housing shortage; Entry-level focus and scale.
• MTH drivers: Affordability and entry-level focus; Community count and Sun Belt footprint.

A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: Homebuilding is highly cyclical and sensitive to mortgage rates and the broader economy. For MTH, homebuilding is deeply cyclical and highly sensitive to mortgage rates, which directly drive buyer affordability and the size of incentives Meritage must offer.

Growth-minded investors who believe the theme has years to run tend to accept the richer multiple for more upside; value-minded investors lean toward the cheaper forward earnings and steadier profile. Pick DHI if you believe its drivers more; MTH if you believe its. Many investors hold both, but since they share themes, that is a concentrated bet, not diversification. Decide deliberately and check overlap. For the full detail, see the DHI and MTH guides.

DHI. D.R. Horton typically trades at a below-market earnings multiple, reflecting the cyclical, rate-sensitive nature of homebuilding. The market discounts builder earnings near cycle peaks and re-rates them through downturns. The financial profile is strong: high returns on capital, a low-leverage balance sheet, a growing dividend, and aggressive buybacks fund capital returns through the cycle.

MTH. Meritage trades at a low double-digit earnings multiple, typical for homebuilders that the market prices for cyclical earnings rather than steady growth. Q1 2026 revenue fell about 17.5% year over year and EPS roughly halved as gross margin compressed to 17.5%, and the company guided full-year 2026 closings and revenue to within about 5% of 2025. The strong cash position and low leverage are a key part of how the market frames the stock's risk.

Headline figures (approximate, early 2026): DHI shows revenue (ttm) ~$35 billion, homes closed (annual) ~90,000, operating margin ~14-16%, cyclical, net income (ttm) ~$4-5 billion; MTH shows market cap ~$4.6B, revenue (ttm) ~$6.0B, q1 2026 home closing revenue ~$1.1B, q1 2026 diluted eps ~$0.82.

DHI and MTH are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined DHI and MTH exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.