Investors Purchase High Volume of Call Options on PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM)

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors bought 9,941 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 1,498% compared to the average volume of 622 call options.

PulteGroup Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of PulteGroup stock opened at $110.75 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $129.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $127.21. PulteGroup has a fifty-two week low of $99.03 and a fifty-two week high of $149.47. The firm has a market cap of $22.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.17, a P/E/G ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 1.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The construction company reported $3.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.10 by $0.25. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 25.30% and a net margin of 16.64%. The business had revenue of $4.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.27 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.90 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that PulteGroup will post 12.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.79%. This is a boost from PulteGroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 17th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is 6.49%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. WR Wealth Planners LLC boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 54.7% in the second quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 232 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 115.1% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 185 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new position in PulteGroup during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new position in PulteGroup during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Candriam S.C.A. acquired a new stake in PulteGroup in the second quarter worth $33,000. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on PulteGroup from $168.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. StockNews.com lowered PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $142.71.

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.