Allworth Financial LP Boosts Stock Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 87.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,509 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 1,174 shares during the quarter. Allworth Financial LP’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $293,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Concord Wealth Partners increased its position in shares of PulteGroup by 1.7% in the third quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 5,002 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $718,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of PulteGroup by 17.2% in the third quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 565 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of PulteGroup by 3.0% in the third quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,054 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $438,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. increased its position in shares of PulteGroup by 16.7% in the fourth quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 622 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of PulteGroup by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,572 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $280,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.40, for a total transaction of $372,400.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 11,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,209,980.80. This represents a 23.53 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total value of $266,125.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 56,617 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,026,879.65. The trade was a 4.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 21,191 shares of company stock valued at $2,256,367 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.83% of the company’s stock.

PulteGroup Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of NYSE:PHM opened at $103.04 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The business has a fifty day moving average of $111.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $125.49. The stock has a market cap of $20.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.00, a PEG ratio of 0.28 and a beta of 1.68. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 52-week low of $101.13 and a 52-week high of $149.47.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.22. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 24.43% and a net margin of 17.18%. On average, research analysts expect that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current year.

PulteGroup declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, January 30th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the construction company to reacquire up to 6.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on PHM. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Bank of America dropped their price target on PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Barclays dropped their price target on PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on PulteGroup from $146.00 to $119.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.86.

About PulteGroup

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.