Vinva Investment Management Ltd Reduces Position in PulteGroup, Inc. $PHM

Vinva Investment Management Ltd lowered its holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 81.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 11,346 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 49,320 shares during the period. Vinva Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $1,197,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of PHM. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $213,092,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of PulteGroup by 40.3% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,486,330 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $358,395,000 after buying an additional 1,001,290 shares in the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. bought a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the first quarter worth $53,262,000. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in PulteGroup by 143.8% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 772,762 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $81,496,000 after acquiring an additional 455,754 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in PulteGroup by 1,248.6% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 435,580 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $45,936,000 after acquiring an additional 403,281 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PHM has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of PulteGroup in a report on Tuesday. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 price target on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Zacks Research raised PulteGroup from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 29th. Bank of America cut their price objective on PulteGroup from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on PulteGroup from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $133.67.

PulteGroup Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PHM opened at $127.19 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $24.79 billion, a PE ratio of 9.79, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.25. PulteGroup, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $88.07 and a fifty-two week high of $142.11. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $123.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $118.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The construction company reported $2.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.10. PulteGroup had a net margin of 14.93% and a return on equity of 19.58%. The firm had revenue of $4.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.35 earnings per share. PulteGroup’s revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 EPS for the current year.

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 16th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. This is an increase from PulteGroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is presently 8.01%.

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.