PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.10 EPS

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) announced its earnings results on Tuesday. The construction company reported $2.96 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.10, Zacks reports. The business had revenue of $4.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.31 billion. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 19.77% and a net margin of 14.93%.PulteGroup’s revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.35 EPS.

PulteGroup Trading Down 2.6%

PHM opened at $120.10 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $130.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $114.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market cap of $23.70 billion, a PE ratio of 9.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.29. PulteGroup has a twelve month low of $88.07 and a twelve month high of $142.11.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 16th were given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 16th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6.58%.

Institutional Trading of PulteGroup

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its stake in PulteGroup by 67.8% during the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 18,465 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,948,000 after buying an additional 7,459 shares during the period. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PulteGroup during the second quarter worth about $237,000. Advisory Services Network LLC raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 38.9% during the second quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 17,732 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,002,000 after purchasing an additional 4,965 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in PulteGroup by 5.1% during the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,698 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $285,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the period. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in PulteGroup by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 2,657 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $280,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on PulteGroup from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of PulteGroup in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $140.00 price target (up previously from $115.00) on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $132.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $133.67.

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.