Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Acquires 47,549 Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 14.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 370,296 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 47,549 shares during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $40,325,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Algert Global LLC boosted its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 19.6% in the 3rd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 3,633 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $521,000 after purchasing an additional 596 shares during the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 56.9% in the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 7,078 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,016,000 after acquiring an additional 2,567 shares in the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 31.5% during the 3rd quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 5,784 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $830,000 after purchasing an additional 1,384 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in PulteGroup by 7.8% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,864,040 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $267,546,000 after purchasing an additional 135,391 shares during the period. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its holdings in PulteGroup by 10.2% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 8,617 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,237,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PHM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group upped their price target on PulteGroup from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Seaport Res Ptn raised PulteGroup from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Barclays lowered their target price on PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.86.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

Shares of PHM opened at $101.76 on Friday. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 1 year low of $100.35 and a 1 year high of $149.47. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $107.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $121.31. The firm has a market cap of $20.60 billion, a PE ratio of 6.92, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.71. 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 posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 forecast that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 EPS for the current year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The business 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 dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.86%. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is currently 5.98%.

PulteGroup announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, January 30th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the construction company to reacquire up to 6.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at PulteGroup

In related news, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.40, for a total transaction of $372,400.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 11,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,209,980.80. This represents a 23.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly 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 21,191 shares of company stock valued at $2,256,367 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

About PulteGroup

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.