First Trust Advisors LP Increases Stake in PulteGroup, Inc. $PHM

First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 7.8% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 4,314,501 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 313,581 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $507,428,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 1,650.0% in the 1st quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 210 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. NFSG Corp purchased a new stake in PulteGroup in the first quarter worth $29,000. Rachor Investment Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in PulteGroup in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in PulteGroup by 158.5% in the first quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 274 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DV Equities LLC bought a new position in PulteGroup in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at PulteGroup

In related news, Director Lila Snyder sold 3,339 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.18, for a total value of $391,264.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,540 shares in the company, valued at $414,817.20. The trade was a 48.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Matthew William Koart sold 7,457 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $894,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 28,100 shares in the company, valued at $3,372,000. This trade represents a 20.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.75% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PHM has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $159.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $136.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of PulteGroup from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $142.21.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

Shares of PulteGroup stock opened at $124.24 on Wednesday. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 1 year low of $108.49 and a 1 year high of $144.49. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $123.27 and its 200 day moving average is $125.12. The stock has a market cap of $23.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.02, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $3.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.40 billion. PulteGroup had a net margin of 12.14% and a return on equity of 16.41%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.57 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 9.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, April 23rd that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the construction company to purchase up to 6.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 16th were given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.06%.

PulteGroup Company Profile

PulteGroup, Inc (NYSE: PHM) is a U.S.-based residential homebuilder that designs, constructs and sells single-family homes and develops master-planned communities. The company operates multiple national and regional brands that target different buyer segments, including first-time buyers, move-up buyers and active-adult customers. Its operations encompass land acquisition and development, home design and construction, community amenities and ongoing customer service and warranty programs.

PulteGroup markets homes under several well-known brands, such as Pulte Homes, Centex and Del Webb, among others, offering a range of product types from entry-level detached homes to larger, higher-end residences and age-restricted active-adult communities.