Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Acquires 361 Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. raised its holdings in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 5.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,764 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 361 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $737,000 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 business. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in PulteGroup by 6.2% during the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 28,096 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,060,000 after acquiring an additional 1,641 shares during the last quarter. Ruffer LLP bought a new position in PulteGroup during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,173,000. AlphaQuest LLC grew its position in PulteGroup by 71.7% during the fourth quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 16,748 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,824,000 after acquiring an additional 6,992 shares during the last quarter. United Community Bank grew its position in PulteGroup by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. United Community Bank now owns 5,749 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $626,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its position in PulteGroup by 77.9% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,636,562 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $180,775,000 after acquiring an additional 716,716 shares during the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

NYSE:PHM opened at $103.51 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The stock has a market cap of $20.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.71. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $109.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $123.56. PulteGroup, Inc. has a twelve month low of $100.54 and a twelve month high of $149.47.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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, research analysts predict that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 EPS for the current year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is currently 5.98%.

PulteGroup declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, January 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the construction company to buy up to 6.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PHM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $140.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer cut their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 target price on shares of PulteGroup in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at PulteGroup

In other news, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 3,500 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 11,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,209,980.80. The trade was a 23.53 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total value of $266,125.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 56,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,026,879.65. This represents a 4.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 21,191 shares of company stock valued at $2,256,367. 0.83% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

PulteGroup 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.