Empowered Funds LLC Has $15.02 Million Stock Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Empowered Funds LLC lowered its stake in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 18.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 137,888 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 31,971 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $15,016,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its position in shares of PulteGroup by 115.1% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 185 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. JNBA Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the third quarter valued at about $43,000. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its position in shares of PulteGroup by 1,059.3% in the third quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 313 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 286 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded PulteGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Barclays lowered their price target on PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America lowered their price target on PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price target on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, PulteGroup presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.86.

PulteGroup Stock Down 3.8 %

NYSE PHM opened at $105.85 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $115.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $126.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.73. PulteGroup, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $100.24 and a fifty-two week high of $149.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.71 billion, a PE ratio of 7.20, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.68.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.22. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 24.43% and a net margin of 17.18%. Equities analysts expect that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, January 30th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the construction company to purchase up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is presently 5.98%.

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.