Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC Reduces Stake in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC lessened its stake in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 4.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,515 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 178 shares during the quarter. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $383,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new stake in PulteGroup during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new stake in PulteGroup in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its position in PulteGroup by 74.1% in the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 322 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in PulteGroup in the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, JNBA Financial Advisors bought a new position in PulteGroup during the third quarter valued at approximately $43,000. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on PHM. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com lowered PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $140.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on PulteGroup from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.86.

PulteGroup Trading Up 0.3 %

PulteGroup stock opened at $103.23 on Friday. PulteGroup, Inc. has a one year low of $100.54 and a one year high of $149.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.90 billion, a PE ratio of 7.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.68. The business’s fifty day moving average is $109.97 and its 200 day moving average is $124.71.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.22. PulteGroup had a net margin of 17.18% and a return on equity of 24.43%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 EPS for the current year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is 5.98%.

PulteGroup declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, January 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to reacquire up to 6.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at PulteGroup

In other PulteGroup news, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.40, for a total value of $372,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 11,372 shares in the company, valued at $1,209,980.80. This represents a 23.53 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total transaction of $1,617,841.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,961,727. This trade represents a 16.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 21,191 shares of company stock valued at $2,256,367 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.83% 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.