Aberdeen Group plc Sells 3,955 Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. $PHM

Aberdeen Group plc cut its stake in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 6.1% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 61,043 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 3,955 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $8,127,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of PHM. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 0.8% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 12,290,631 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,296,170,000 after acquiring an additional 95,058 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in PulteGroup in the 2nd quarter worth about $404,339,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in PulteGroup by 27.2% in the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,199,906 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $337,462,000 after purchasing an additional 683,728 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in PulteGroup by 0.9% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,634,275 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $277,811,000 after purchasing an additional 23,051 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new position in shares of PulteGroup during the third quarter valued at approximately $315,883,000. 89.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on PHM. Citizens Jmp started coverage on PulteGroup in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. They issued a “market outperform” rating and a $145.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of PulteGroup from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 11th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $128.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $149.00 to $131.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $111.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.15.

Insider Transactions at PulteGroup

In other news, insider Ryan Marshall sold 111,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.86, for a total value of $14,891,925.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 659,392 shares in the company, valued at $88,266,213.12. This trade represents a 14.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Matthew William Koart sold 15,309 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.79, for a total value of $2,078,809.11. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 42,418 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,759,940.22. This represents a 26.52% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 144,779 shares of company stock valued at $19,432,616. 0.76% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

Shares of PulteGroup stock opened at $139.95 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.59, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 52 week low of $88.07 and a 52 week high of $144.49. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $127.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $127.02.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.35%.

PulteGroup Company Profile

PulteGroup, Inc (NYSE: PHM) is a U.S.-based residential homebuilder that designs, constructs and sells single-family homes and develops master-planned communities. The company operates multiple national and regional brands that target different buyer segments, including first-time buyers, move-up buyers and active-adult customers. Its operations encompass land acquisition and development, home design and construction, community amenities and ongoing customer service and warranty programs.

PulteGroup markets homes under several well-known brands, such as Pulte Homes, Centex and Del Webb, among others, offering a range of product types from entry-level detached homes to larger, higher-end residences and age-restricted active-adult communities.