PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Wednesday.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Zelman & Associates raised PulteGroup from a neutral rating to an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday. Wedbush reaffirmed a neutral rating and issued a $85.00 price objective on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on PulteGroup from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group downgraded PulteGroup from a buy rating to a neutral rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $93.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, Raymond James lifted their price objective on PulteGroup from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $111.73.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

NYSE PHM opened at $113.74 on Wednesday. PulteGroup has a fifty-two week low of $64.70 and a fifty-two week high of $121.07. The stock has a market cap of $23.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 1.56. The business has a fifty day moving average of $111.28 and a 200-day moving average of $99.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.21 by $0.07. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 25.81% and a net margin of 16.63%. The company had revenue of $4.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.63 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that PulteGroup will post 11.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 30th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the construction company to reacquire up to 6.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.41%.

Insider Buying and Selling at PulteGroup

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PulteGroup

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 753,768 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $78,030,000 after buying an additional 28,833 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 24.9% in the third quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 26,341 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,951,000 after buying an additional 5,257 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 65.0% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 224,978 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $16,660,000 after buying an additional 88,638 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the fourth quarter worth about $6,111,000. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the fourth quarter worth about $1,342,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

About PulteGroup

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.