Analysts Set PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) PT at $142.71

Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the sixteen research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $142.71.

PHM has been the topic of several research reports. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on PulteGroup from $168.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price 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. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. BTIG Research boosted their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $139.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th.

PulteGroup Price Performance

Shares of PHM stock opened at $108.90 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $125.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $127.06. The firm has a market cap of $22.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.03, a P/E/G ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 1.62. PulteGroup has a 1-year low of $99.03 and a 1-year high of $149.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.73.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The construction company reported $3.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.10 by $0.25. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 25.30% and a net margin of 16.64%. The business had revenue of $4.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.27 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.90 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that PulteGroup will post 12.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is a boost from PulteGroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 17th. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is currently 6.49%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PulteGroup

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 102.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,040,828 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,297,630,000 after acquiring an additional 4,571,757 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in PulteGroup by 5.5% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 11,254,274 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,647,364,000 after purchasing an additional 585,735 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP bought a new position in PulteGroup during the 3rd quarter valued at $66,485,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in shares of PulteGroup by 357.1% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 521,958 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $74,917,000 after purchasing an additional 407,764 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 1,020.0% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 435,925 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $62,568,000 after buying an additional 397,003 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

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.