PulteGroup Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:PHM)

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) was the target of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Traders acquired 9,941 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 1,498% compared to the typical volume of 622 call options.

PulteGroup Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of PHM stock opened at $106.15 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $110.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $97.77. PulteGroup has a fifty-two week low of $61.00 and a fifty-two week high of $121.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.04, a P/E/G ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.21 by $0.07. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 25.97% and a net margin of 16.20%. The business had revenue of $4.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.63 earnings per share. PulteGroup’s revenue was down 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that PulteGroup will post 11.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to repurchase up to 6.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is 6.81%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 15,389 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,586,452.01. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PulteGroup

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PHM. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 9.5% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 55,196 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,313,000 after purchasing an additional 4,799 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC purchased a new position in PulteGroup during the 1st quarter valued at about $221,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 1.7% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 22,505 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $945,000 after purchasing an additional 382 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 11.1% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 4,487 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $188,000 after purchasing an additional 449 shares during the period. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 26.7% during the first quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 70,856 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,969,000 after purchasing an additional 14,918 shares during the period. 89.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on PHM. Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 target price on shares of PulteGroup in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on PulteGroup from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Raymond James raised their target price on PulteGroup from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on PulteGroup from $91.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 2nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, PulteGroup presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $106.47.

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.