OLD Second National Bank of Aurora Has $4.76 Million Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

OLD Second National Bank of Aurora lessened its position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 9.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 46,146 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 4,668 shares during the period. PulteGroup accounts for about 1.3% of OLD Second National Bank of Aurora’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $4,763,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt lifted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 62,894 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $6,492,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its position in PulteGroup by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 19,718 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,035,000 after buying an additional 1,095 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Quantum Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in PulteGroup during the fourth quarter valued at $238,000. Finally, Everence Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 6.0% during the fourth quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,050 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $934,000 after buying an additional 510 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on PHM shares. UBS Group lowered PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $93.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Barclays raised their target price on PulteGroup from $126.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Raymond James lifted their target price on PulteGroup from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 target price on shares of PulteGroup in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on PulteGroup from $116.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $106.47.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other PulteGroup news, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.09, for a total value of $206,180.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 15,389 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,586,452.01. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.83% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

PulteGroup Stock Up 2.4 %

NYSE:PHM traded up $2.53 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $108.68. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 296,948 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,762,368. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $110.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $97.77. The company has a market capitalization of $22.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 12 month low of $61.74 and a 12 month high of $121.07.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.21 by $0.07. PulteGroup had a net margin of 16.20% and a return on equity of 25.97%. The company had revenue of $4.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.63 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 11.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 6.81%.

PulteGroup announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 30th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the construction company to repurchase up to 6.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

PulteGroup Company Profile

PulteGroup, Inc, through its subsidiaries, primarily engages in the homebuilding business in the United States. It acquires and develops land primarily for residential purposes; and constructs housing on such land. The company also offers various home designs, including single-family detached, townhomes, condominiums, and duplexes under the Centex, Pulte Homes, Del Webb, DiVosta Homes, John Wieland Homes and Neighborhoods, and American West brand names.