New York Life Investment Management LLC Increases Stock Holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

New York Life Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 10.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 30,632 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 2,854 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $3,336,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in PulteGroup by 102.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,040,828 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,297,630,000 after purchasing an additional 4,571,757 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in PulteGroup by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 11,254,274 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,647,364,000 after purchasing an additional 585,735 shares in the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new position in PulteGroup in the 3rd quarter valued at $66,485,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in PulteGroup by 357.1% in the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 521,958 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $74,917,000 after purchasing an additional 407,764 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in PulteGroup by 1,020.0% in 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

PulteGroup Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:PHM opened at $103.23 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $109.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $124.72. 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 company has a market capitalization of $20.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.02, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.68. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 12-month low of $100.54 and a 12-month high of $149.47.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.22. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 24.43% and a net margin of 17.18%. Sell-side analysts expect that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 EPS for the current year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The company 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 $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is currently 5.98%.

PulteGroup declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, January 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the construction company to buy up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PHM has been the topic of a number of research reports. Bank of America decreased their price objective on PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com downgraded PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Barclays cut their target price on PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, PulteGroup presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at PulteGroup

In other PulteGroup news, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total value of $266,125.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 56,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,026,879.65. The trade was a 4.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total value of $1,617,841.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 74,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,961,727. The trade was a 16.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 21,191 shares of company stock valued at $2,256,367 in the last three months. 0.83% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

PulteGroup Company Profile

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.