Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Buys 5,176 Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. $PHM

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 3.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 137,435 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,176 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $16,116,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,555,304 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,589,495,000 after acquiring an additional 655,033 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in PulteGroup by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,000,920 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $469,148,000 after purchasing an additional 377,003 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in PulteGroup during the fourth quarter valued at $466,653,000. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in PulteGroup by 13.1% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,755,241 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $185,108,000 after purchasing an additional 202,870 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in PulteGroup by 120.4% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,703,049 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $225,024,000 after purchasing an additional 930,287 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PHM has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $159.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $115.00 to $112.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $136.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of PulteGroup from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $132.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.71.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Matthew William Koart sold 7,457 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $894,840.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 28,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,372,000. The trade was a 20.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Lila Snyder sold 3,339 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.18, for a total transaction of $391,264.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,540 shares in the company, valued at approximately $414,817.20. The trade was a 48.54% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.75% of the stock is owned by insiders.

PulteGroup Trading Down 0.0%

NYSE PHM opened at $123.13 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $119.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $124.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.94. PulteGroup, Inc. has a one year low of $98.27 and a one year high of $144.49. The company has a market capitalization of $23.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.20.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.01). PulteGroup had a return on equity of 16.41% and a net margin of 12.14%.The firm had revenue of $3.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.40 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.57 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 10 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be given a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is presently 10.06%.

PulteGroup announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, April 23rd that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to buy up to 6.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

About PulteGroup

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.