LEN vs PHM: How Lennar and PulteGroup Compare (2026)
Last updated July 2026
Short answer
LEN (Lennar) and PHM (PulteGroup) share investment themes but are different businesses. The right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme.
LEN vs PHM: the tie-breaker metrics
Same yardstick, side by side (as of July 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.
| Metric | LEN | PHM | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|---|
| Market cap | $20.68B | $25.31B | Size. The larger name is the incumbent; the smaller has more room to grow and more to prove. |
| Forward P/E | 13.25 | 11.81 | Valuation on next year's expected earnings, the same yardstick for both. Lower is cheaper for that growth; higher means the market is paying up. |
| Trailing P/E | 13.46 | 13.56 | Valuation on the last 12 months. A big drop from trailing to forward means the market expects earnings to jump, so more growth is already in the price. |
| Beta | 1.39 | 1.19 | Volatility vs the market. Above 1 swings harder than the index; below 1 is steadier. Higher beta means bigger drawdowns to hold through. |
| Price vs 52-week range | 9% of range | 68% of range | Where today's price sits between the 52-week low and high. Near the high is momentum with less margin of safety; near the low is out of favor or a discount, depending on why. |
| Price / book | 0.96 | 1.96 | How much you pay over book value. Very high can signal an asset-light, high-return business or a rich price. |
Before you buy: how LEN and PHM affect your concentration
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. LEN and PHM 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 LEN and PHM 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.
What does Lennar (LEN) do?
Lennar is one of the largest homebuilders in the United States, building and selling new single-family homes, townhomes, and some multifamily communities across many states. The company operates an integrated model: it acquires and develops land, constructs homes, and provides related financial services through Lennar Financial Services, which offers mortgage origination, title, and closing services to its buyers. Lennar has pushed an asset-light, land-light strategy, shifting toward optioning land and using third-party land banks rather than owning large inventories of raw land outright, which reduces capital tied up and improves returns. It also spun off some land-holding assets into a separate entity to sharpen this focus. Lennar makes money on the spread between home sales prices and the cost of land and construction, plus fees from its mortgage and title operations and its multifamily and technology investments. Demand is driven by household formation, employment, and mortgage rates. The company is highly sensitive to interest rates and the housing cycle. Headquartered in Miami, Florida, Lennar is a long-standing leader in US residential construction.
What does PulteGroup (PHM) do?
PulteGroup is a diversified national homebuilder operating in more than 45 markets across the United States, selling homes under a portfolio of brands that spans price points and buyer types: Centex for entry-level, Pulte Homes for move-up, Del Webb for active-adult (55+) communities, plus DiVosta and John Wieland. It also runs a Financial Services segment covering mortgage banking and title, which attaches financing to its home closings. In 2025 the company delivered roughly 29,600 homes on about $16.7 billion of home sale revenues and around $2.2 billion of net income, making it one of the big three or four US builders alongside D.R. Horton, Lennar, and NVR.
LEN vs PHM: how do they differ?
Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.
- LEN drivers: Structural US housing shortage; Asset-light, land-light strategy.
- PHM drivers: Community count and order growth; Heavy capital returns via buybacks.
Which fits which kind of investor
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: Lennar is highly cyclical and acutely sensitive to mortgage rates: when rates rise, affordability falls, demand softens, and Lennar often resorts to price cuts and mortgage-rate buydowns that compress margins. For PHM, pulteGroup is highly cyclical and its results hinge on factors outside its control.
LEN or PHM: which should you pick?
LEN vs PHM: the full fundamentals
LEN. Lennar trades at a low single-digit-to-low-double-digit earnings multiple, typical of cyclical homebuilders that the market values cautiously because profits swing with the housing cycle. The low multiple reflects sensitivity to mortgage rates and recession risk, partly offset by Lennar's scale, strong balance sheet, and land-light strategy. The valuation is also often viewed against book value, which tends to be a steadier anchor than peak-cycle earnings.
PHM. PulteGroup trades at roughly 12 times earnings, a low multiple typical of cyclical homebuilders at or near a demand peak. The 2025 record of about $16.7 billion in home sale revenue and $2.2 billion of net income is giving way to softer 2026 comparisons, with Q1 revenue and margins both down year over year. The modest dividend yield of under 1% understates total capital returns, which are dominated by a large and rising buyback program.
Headline figures (approximate, early 2026): LEN shows revenue (ttm) ~$35 billion, operating margin ~12%, net income (ttm) ~$3-4 billion, p/e (ttm) ~11x (low, reflecting cyclicality); PHM shows revenue (ttm) ~$16-17B home sale revenues, net income (2025) ~$2.2B, q1 2026 eps ~$1.79 (down from ~$2.57), market cap ~$24B.
The bottom line: LEN vs PHM
LEN and PHM 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 LEN and PHM exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.
Wondering how LEN or PHM fits the portfolio you already own? Walnut is an AI investing app that connects your brokerage read-only and answers questions like that about your actual holdings: overlap, concentration, and how each position tracks the S&P 500. Compare the best AI portfolio analyzers or see the best AI investing apps in 2026.
Investing in Lennar with AI
Connect the broker you already use and ask Walnut's AI how LEN fits what you actually hold: whether you own it already through a fund, what it would do to your concentration, and how it has tracked the S&P 500. Read-only by default, and you approve anything before it reaches your broker.
FAQ
What is the difference between LEN and PHM?
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Lennar is one of the largest homebuilders in the United States, building and selling new single-family homes, townhomes, and some multifamily communities across many states. PulteGroup is a diversified national homebuilder operating in more than 45 markets across the United States, selling homes under a portfolio of brands that spans price points and buyer types: Centex for entry-level, Pulte Homes for move-up, Del Webb for active-adult (55+) communities, plus DiVosta and John Wieland. They show up together because they share investment themes, but they are different businesses, so the better fit depends on which thesis you are expressing.
Is LEN or PHM the better stock?
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Neither is universally better; they suit different views and risk levels. Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Compare what each does, the tie-breaker metrics above, and the risks, then decide which fits your thesis and what you already own.
Which is cheaper, LEN or PHM?
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On forward P/E (as of July 2026), LEN trades at 13.25x and PHM at 11.81x, so PHM is the cheaper of the two on next year's expected earnings. A lower multiple is not automatically the better buy: a richer valuation can be justified by faster growth, and a lower one can reflect real risk. Weigh the multiple against how fast each business is compounding.
Should you own both LEN and PHM?
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Because they share themes, owning both concentrates you in that theme. That can be intentional (a focused bet) or accidental (less diversification than it looks). Walnut can show your combined exposure across both, and whether adding either over-concentrates you, before you buy.
What are the risks of LEN vs PHM?
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LEN: Lennar is highly cyclical and acutely sensitive to mortgage rates: when rates rise, affordability falls, demand softens, and Lennar often resorts to price cuts and mortgage-rate buydowns that compress margins. A recession, rising unemployment, or a housing downturn would hit orders, prices, and profitability hard. Land, labor, and materials cost inflation pressures margins, and construction can be delayed by supply-chain and permitting issues. Although the land-light model reduces risk, the business remains tied to the broader economy and consumer confidence. The stock can be volatile and trades at low multiples reflecting cyclicality. PHM: PulteGroup is highly cyclical and its results hinge on factors outside its control. Higher or persistent mortgage rates and stretched affordability directly suppress demand, average selling prices, and gross margins, as the Q1 2026 310-basis-point margin decline showed. Rising land, labor, and materials costs squeeze profitability, and the company often uses mortgage-rate buydowns as incentives that further pressure margins. A broad economic slowdown, weaker employment, or falling consumer confidence can quickly reduce orders and backlog. Because so much of the equity return comes from buybacks, a downturn that forces cash to be conserved would remove a key support for the stock.
Walnut is informational, not investment advice. This page is descriptive and not a recommendation to buy or sell LEN or PHM; figures are approximate and dated (as of July 2026). Verify current data before investing.