PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) was the target of a large drop in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 6,664,467 shares, a drop of 15.7% from the March 31st total of 7,901,715 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,946,999 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.4 days. Currently, 3.5% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Insider Activity

In other PulteGroup news, EVP Kevin A. Henry sold 5,173 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.03, for a total transaction of $729,548.19. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 14,673 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,069,333.19. This trade represents a 26.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ryan Marshall sold 111,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.86, for a total value of $14,891,925.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 659,392 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $88,266,213.12. The trade was a 14.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 149,952 shares of company stock worth $20,162,165. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PHM. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in PulteGroup by 18.3% in the 4th quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 484 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC raised its stake in PulteGroup by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 2,875 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $304,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Inc. AR raised its stake in PulteGroup by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 2,350 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $276,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its stake in PulteGroup by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 14,308 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,890,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Perigon Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in PulteGroup by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,672 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $313,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

Shares of PHM stock traded down $1.95 during trading on Friday, reaching $120.41. The company had a trading volume of 254,508 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,891,468. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $124.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $124.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.94. PulteGroup has a one year low of $95.20 and a one year high of $144.49. The company has a market capitalization of $22.94 billion, a PE ratio of 11.64, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.33.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.01). PulteGroup had a net margin of 12.14% and a return on equity of 16.41%. The company had revenue of $3.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.40 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.57 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that PulteGroup will post 10.02 earnings per share for the current year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be paid a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.06%.

PulteGroup declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, April 23rd that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the construction company to repurchase up to 6.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Truist Financial cut their price target on PulteGroup from $170.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on PulteGroup from $149.00 to $131.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Citigroup raised their price target on PulteGroup from $136.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Bank of America cut their price target on PulteGroup from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Evercore raised their price target on PulteGroup from $146.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.71.

PulteGroup Company Profile

PulteGroup, Inc (NYSE: PHM) is a U.S.-based residential homebuilder that designs, constructs and sells single-family homes and develops master-planned communities. The company operates multiple national and regional brands that target different buyer segments, including first-time buyers, move-up buyers and active-adult customers. Its operations encompass land acquisition and development, home design and construction, community amenities and ongoing customer service and warranty programs.

PulteGroup markets homes under several well-known brands, such as Pulte Homes, Centex and Del Webb, among others, offering a range of product types from entry-level detached homes to larger, higher-end residences and age-restricted active-adult communities.