PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.22 EPS

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.22, Zacks reports. PulteGroup had a net margin of 16.64% and a return on equity of 25.30%.

PulteGroup Price Performance

PHM traded up $7.02 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $120.01. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,641,775 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,085,241. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $118.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $127.48. PulteGroup has a 12 month low of $100.24 and a 12 month high of $149.47. The stock has a market cap of $24.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.85, a P/E/G ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 17th were given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 17th. This is a boost from PulteGroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is currently 6.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on PHM shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $168.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $146.00 to $119.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $142.29.

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.