PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) Shares Sold by American Century Companies Inc.

American Century Companies Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 11.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 291,109 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 36,122 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $31,702,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 16.7% in the fourth quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 622 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $68,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the period. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,572 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $280,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. Meridian Wealth Management LLC grew its position in PulteGroup by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,224 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,440,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in PulteGroup by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,384 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $479,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital raised its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 3,050 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $328,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at PulteGroup

In related news, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total transaction of $266,125.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 56,617 shares in the company, valued at $6,026,879.65. The trade was a 4.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.40, for a total value of $372,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 11,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,209,980.80. The trade was a 23.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 21,191 shares of company stock valued at $2,256,367 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PHM has been the topic of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on PulteGroup from $140.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on PulteGroup from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America decreased their price target on PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. 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 research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of PulteGroup from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, PulteGroup has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.86.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

PHM opened at $101.76 on Friday. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 1-year low of $100.35 and a 1-year high of $149.47. The stock has a market cap of $20.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.92, a P/E/G ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.71. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $107.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $121.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.22. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 24.43% and a net margin of 17.18%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, January 30th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the construction company to purchase up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is currently 5.98%.

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.