3,272 Shares in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) Bought by Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC

Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC bought a new position in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 3,272 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $356,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in PulteGroup during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its stake in PulteGroup by 74.1% during the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 322 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in PulteGroup during the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its stake in PulteGroup by 41.9% during the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 444 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. grew its stake in PulteGroup by 642.2% during the 4th quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 475 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 411 shares during the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

NYSE PHM opened at $103.97 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.07, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.71. PulteGroup, Inc. has a twelve month low of $100.54 and a twelve month high of $149.47. 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 stock has a 50-day moving average of $108.92 and a 200 day moving average of $122.89.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

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 issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is currently 5.98%.

PulteGroup announced that its board has initiated a share 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 purchase up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com downgraded PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Barclays dropped their price target on PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 target price on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Seven equities research 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.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at PulteGroup

In other PulteGroup news, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 16.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.40, for a total value of $372,400.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 11,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,209,980.80. The trade was a 23.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,191 shares of company stock valued at $2,256,367 over the last quarter. 0.83% of the stock is currently owned by 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.