Savant Capital LLC Increases Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Savant Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 6.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,397 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 594 shares during the quarter. Savant Capital LLC’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $970,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 54.6% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,003,713 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $310,043,000 after acquiring an additional 1,060,466 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in PulteGroup by 63.6% in the 3rd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,748,119 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $129,354,000 after purchasing an additional 679,582 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new position in PulteGroup in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $47,762,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in PulteGroup by 13.3% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,432,965 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $328,261,000 after buying an additional 522,032 shares in the last quarter. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of PulteGroup during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,738,000. Institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 2,000 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.09, for a total transaction of $206,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 15,389 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,586,452.01. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on PHM shares. Zelman & Associates raised shares of PulteGroup from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on PulteGroup from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective (up previously from $120.00) on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Oppenheimer increased their target price on PulteGroup from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $85.00 price target on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, PulteGroup presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $111.73.

PulteGroup Stock Up 2.5 %

Shares of NYSE PHM opened at $116.64 on Friday. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 1 year low of $65.16 and a 1 year high of $121.07. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $112.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $100.51. The company has a market cap of $24.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.34, a PEG ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.21 by $0.07. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 25.81% and a net margin of 16.63%. The firm had revenue of $4.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.47 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.63 EPS. PulteGroup’s quarterly revenue was down 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.66 earnings per share for the current year.

PulteGroup announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 30th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the construction company to purchase up to 6.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

PulteGroup 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.