Ryland latest homebuilder to slash dividend

The Ryland Group Inc. has become the latest home builder to slash its dividend. In an announcement following Thursday’s market close, the Calabasas, Calif., company announced that it will be chopping its quarterly dividend by 75% to 3 cents a share, from 12 cents. The company, which builds homes and offers mortgage financing in 15 states, has been struggling with falling home prices, competition from foreclosed homes and a frozen credit market, which have kept skittish homebuyers on the sidelines. Its California developments have been hit particularly hard in the housing crunch. In the third quarter, Ryland reported a 27% sales decline and a loss of $65.7 million. “With many housing fundamentals continuing to deteriorate and concerns about the availability of credit escalating over the past few months, we believe this reduction is prudent and should not be unexpected,” Buck Horne, an analyst with Raymond James & Associates Inc. in St. Petersburg, Fla., wrote in a research note. Ryland’s decision to cut its dividend follows similar actions taken by several of its peers, including Centex Corp. of Dallas, Lennar Corp. of Miami and Pulte Homes Inc. of Bloomfield Hills, Mich., which recently either have trimmed or suspended their dividends.