EFG Asset Management Americas Corp. Buys 263 Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

EFG Asset Management Americas Corp. lifted its stake in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,915 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 263 shares during the quarter. EFG Asset Management Americas Corp.’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $1,515,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 11,254,274 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,647,364,000 after purchasing an additional 585,735 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 102.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,040,828 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,297,630,000 after purchasing an additional 4,571,757 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 7.8% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,864,040 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $267,546,000 after acquiring an additional 135,391 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 10.0% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,424,119 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $155,856,000 after acquiring an additional 129,975 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,351,491 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $147,177,000 after acquiring an additional 19,829 shares during the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at PulteGroup

In other news, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total value of $266,125.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 56,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,026,879.65. The trade was a 4.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total value of $1,617,841.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,758 shares in the company, valued at $7,961,727. This represents a 16.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 21,191 shares of company stock valued at $2,256,367 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

PulteGroup Stock Up 2.3 %

PulteGroup stock opened at $108.44 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.96 billion, a PE ratio of 7.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.71. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 12 month low of $100.54 and a 12 month high of $149.47. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $109.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $124.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.22. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 24.43% and a net margin of 17.18%. On average, analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, January 30th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the construction company to buy up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is presently 5.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on PHM shares. UBS Group increased their target price on PulteGroup from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America decreased 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. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded PulteGroup from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Barclays reduced their target price on PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.86.

PulteGroup Company 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.