Analysts Set PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) PT at $142.71

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $142.71.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. StockNews.com cut shares of PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 13th. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on PulteGroup from $168.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on PulteGroup from $198.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd.

PulteGroup Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of PulteGroup stock opened at $109.52 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $126.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $126.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.46 billion, a PE ratio of 8.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 1.62. PulteGroup has a 52-week low of $99.03 and a 52-week high of $149.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.73.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The construction company reported $3.35 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.10 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $4.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.27 billion. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 25.30% and a net margin of 16.64%. The company’s revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.90 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that PulteGroup will post 12.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 17th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.80%. This is an increase from PulteGroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is currently 6.49%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of PulteGroup by 102.3% during the third 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 in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 5.5% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 11,254,274 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,647,364,000 after acquiring an additional 585,735 shares during the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new position in PulteGroup during the third quarter valued at $66,485,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in PulteGroup by 357.1% in the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 521,958 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $74,917,000 after purchasing an additional 407,764 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 1,020.0% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 435,925 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $62,568,000 after purchasing an additional 397,003 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.