Analysts Set PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) PT at $104.87

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the fourteen research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $104.87.

PHM has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group cut shares of PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $93.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Citigroup cut shares of PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $87.00 to $113.00 in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on PulteGroup from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 2nd.

PulteGroup Price Performance

PulteGroup stock opened at $118.01 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $107.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $93.66. PulteGroup has a 1 year low of $56.63 and a 1 year high of $118.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.05, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.21 by $0.07. PulteGroup had a net margin of 16.20% and a return on equity of 25.97%. The firm had revenue of $4.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.63 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that PulteGroup will post 11.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is currently 6.81%.

PulteGroup declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 30th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the construction company to repurchase up to 6.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at PulteGroup

In other PulteGroup news, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 2,000 shares of PulteGroup 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 15,389 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,586,452.01. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.83% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PulteGroup

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in shares of PulteGroup by 4.0% during 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 in the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in PulteGroup by 24.9% in the third quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 26,341 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,951,000 after purchasing an additional 5,257 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in PulteGroup by 65.0% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 224,978 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $16,660,000 after purchasing an additional 88,638 shares in the last quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc acquired a new position in PulteGroup in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,815,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in PulteGroup by 25.2% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,517 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $186,000 after purchasing an additional 506 shares in the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.