Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Sells 176,862 Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC decreased its stake in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 20.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 684,625 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 176,862 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $73,785,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in PHM. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in PulteGroup by 115.1% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 185 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Transcendent Capital Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new position in shares of PulteGroup during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. JNBA Financial Advisors bought a new position in shares of PulteGroup during the 3rd quarter valued at about $43,000. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 1,059.3% during the 3rd quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 313 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 286 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

PulteGroup Price Performance

Shares of PulteGroup stock opened at $106.01 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $113.91 and a 200 day moving average of $126.63. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 52 week low of $100.24 and a 52 week high of $149.47. The company has a market cap of $21.74 billion, a PE ratio of 7.21, a P/E/G ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.22. PulteGroup had a net margin of 17.18% and a return on equity of 24.43%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.43 earnings per share for the current year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is currently 5.98%.

PulteGroup announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, January 30th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the construction company to purchase up to 6.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PHM has been the topic of several research reports. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com lowered shares of PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. BTIG Research lifted their price objective on PulteGroup from $139.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn lowered PulteGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.86.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 56,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,026,879.65. This represents a 4.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.83% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.