PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) Shares Sold by Private Trust Co. NA

Private Trust Co. NA cut its stake in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 28.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 3,006 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 1,217 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $327,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Logan Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in PulteGroup by 67.7% in the third quarter. Logan Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,797 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,124,000 after buying an additional 5,976 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its holdings in PulteGroup by 38.1% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 121,299 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $17,410,000 after buying an additional 33,472 shares during the period. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department raised its holdings in PulteGroup by 39.8% in the third quarter. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department now owns 39,589 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $5,682,000 after buying an additional 11,269 shares during the period. Systematic Financial Management LP raised its holdings in PulteGroup by 3.9% in the third quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 130,257 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $18,696,000 after buying an additional 4,840 shares during the period. Finally, Nilsine Partners LLC raised its holdings in PulteGroup by 929.2% in the fourth quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 20,574 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,240,000 after buying an additional 18,575 shares during the period. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on PHM. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 13th. Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $140.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.86.

PulteGroup Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:PHM opened at $103.23 on Monday. 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 fifty day simple moving average of $109.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $124.74. The firm has a market cap of $20.90 billion, a PE ratio of 7.02, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is presently 5.98%.

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.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other PulteGroup news, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 3,500 shares of PulteGroup 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 11,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,209,980.80. The trade was a 23.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 74,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,961,727. This represents 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 over the last 90 days. 0.83% of the stock is 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.