Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC Trims Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC trimmed its stake in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 3.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,247 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 206 shares during the period. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $680,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in PHM. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the third quarter valued at approximately $293,000. Brookstone Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the 3rd quarter worth $267,000. Wedmont Private Capital lifted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 2,940 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $410,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC grew its position in shares of PulteGroup by 230.1% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 7,908 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,135,000 after buying an additional 5,512 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 145.9% during the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 5,098 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $732,000 after buying an additional 3,025 shares during the period. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of PulteGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $198.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barclays lowered their target price on PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.86.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

Shares of PulteGroup stock opened at $105.85 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.20, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.68. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 52 week low of $100.24 and a 52 week high of $149.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $115.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $126.89.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.22. PulteGroup had a net margin of 17.18% and a return on equity of 24.43%. Sell-side analysts expect that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.43 EPS for the current year.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.83%. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is presently 5.98%.

PulteGroup announced that its board has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, January 30th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the construction company to buy up to 6.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.