GLOBALT Investments LLC GA Decreases Stock Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

GLOBALT Investments LLC GA cut its holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,894 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 118 shares during the period. GLOBALT Investments LLC GA’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $1,077,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 622 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in PulteGroup by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,572 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $280,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in PulteGroup by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,224 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,440,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in PulteGroup by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,384 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $479,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital lifted its holdings in PulteGroup by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 3,050 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $328,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PHM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $146.00 to $119.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of PulteGroup from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price objective on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.86.

PulteGroup Stock Up 1.0 %

PHM opened at $103.97 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 1 year low of $100.54 and a 1 year high of $149.47. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $108.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $122.89. The company has a market cap of $21.05 billion, a PE ratio of 7.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.71.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 12.32 earnings per share 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 $0.22 dividend. 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 (DPR) is 5.98%.

PulteGroup declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, January 30th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the construction company to repurchase up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at PulteGroup

In other news, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total transaction of $1,617,841.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,758 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,961,727. This represents a 16.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total value of $266,125.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 56,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,026,879.65. This trade represents a 4.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,191 shares of company stock valued at $2,256,367 over the last 90 days. 0.83% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About PulteGroup

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.