Quantbot Technologies LP Takes Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 102,058 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,114,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in PHM. Logan Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 67.7% in the third quarter. Logan Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,797 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,124,000 after purchasing an additional 5,976 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 38.1% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 121,299 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $17,410,000 after acquiring an additional 33,472 shares during the period. Systematic Financial Management LP grew its position in shares of PulteGroup by 3.9% during the third quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 130,257 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $18,696,000 after purchasing an additional 4,840 shares in the last quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC lifted its position in PulteGroup by 929.2% during the fourth quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 20,574 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,240,000 after purchasing an additional 18,575 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vision Capital Corp bought a new position in shares of PulteGroup during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $22,348,000. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

PHM opened at $103.04 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $108.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $122.25. The stock has a market cap of $20.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.00, a P/E/G ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.71. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 1-year low of $100.35 and a 1-year high of $149.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, January 30th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the construction company to reacquire up to 6.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders 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 5.98%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other PulteGroup news, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 owns 11,372 shares in the company, valued at $1,209,980.80. The trade was a 23.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $6,026,879.65. The trade was a 4.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,191 shares of company stock worth $2,256,367 over the last three months. 0.83% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded PulteGroup from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America decreased their price target on PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on PulteGroup from $146.00 to $119.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.86.

PulteGroup 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.