PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) Hits New 12-Month High at $145.00

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $145.00 and last traded at $145.00, with a volume of 8064 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $140.99.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on PHM. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on PulteGroup from $143.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on PulteGroup from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Friday, August 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on PulteGroup from $141.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on PulteGroup from $183.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $133.14.

PulteGroup Stock Up 1.0 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $29.95 billion, a PE ratio of 11.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 1.62. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $127.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $118.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The construction company reported $3.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.56. The company had revenue of $4.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.49 billion. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 25.67% and a net margin of 16.75%. PulteGroup’s revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.00 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.9 earnings per share for the current year.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 17th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 17th. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is 6.41%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other PulteGroup news, Director Thomas J. Folliard sold 19,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.14, for a total transaction of $2,491,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 45,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,931,462.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CFO Robert Oshaughnessy sold 71,007 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.83, for a total transaction of $9,573,873.81. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 89,323 shares in the company, valued at $12,043,420.09. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Thomas J. Folliard sold 19,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.14, for a total value of $2,491,660.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 45,230 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,931,462.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 119,000 shares of company stock valued at $15,814,039. Corporate insiders own 0.83% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PulteGroup

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PHM. Financial Advocates Investment Management acquired a new position in PulteGroup in the fourth quarter valued at $291,000. Independent Advisor Alliance acquired a new position in PulteGroup in the fourth quarter valued at $243,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in PulteGroup by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 32,649 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,370,000 after acquiring an additional 414 shares during the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in PulteGroup by 21.0% in the fourth quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,396 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $454,000 after acquiring an additional 763 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC acquired a new position in PulteGroup in the fourth quarter valued at $201,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

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.