Mount Lucas Management LP Reduces Stock Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Mount Lucas Management LP decreased its holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 5.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,360 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 929 shares during the period. Mount Lucas Management LP’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $1,673,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Ruffer LLP bought a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the fourth quarter worth about $3,173,000. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its position in PulteGroup by 71.7% in the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 16,748 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,824,000 after buying an additional 6,992 shares during the period. United Community Bank grew its stake in PulteGroup by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. United Community Bank now owns 5,749 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $626,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Amundi increased its position in shares of PulteGroup by 77.9% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,636,562 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $180,775,000 after acquiring an additional 716,716 shares during the period. Finally, Naviter Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of PulteGroup during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $483,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PHM has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Seaport Res Ptn raised PulteGroup from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on PulteGroup from $140.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com downgraded PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 price target on shares of PulteGroup in a report on Friday, January 31st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at PulteGroup

In related news, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the executive vice president now 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total transaction of $266,125.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 56,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,026,879.65. This represents a 4.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 21,191 shares of company stock worth $2,256,367. 0.75% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

Shares of PHM opened at $108.06 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The firm has a market cap of $21.88 billion, a PE ratio of 7.35, a P/E/G 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 stock has a fifty day moving average price of $109.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $124.06.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last released its quarterly earnings results 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%. Equities research analysts predict that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is presently 5.98%.

PulteGroup declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, January 30th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the construction company to reacquire up to 6.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.