PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) Shares Sold by Retirement Systems of Alabama

Retirement Systems of Alabama trimmed its holdings in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 80.3% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 43,508 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 177,272 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $4,473,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 11,937,866 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,300,034,000 after buying an additional 683,592 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,120,878 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $556,465,000 after buying an additional 64,947 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup during the 4th quarter worth approximately $427,562,000. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 14.9% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,425,941 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $264,185,000 after buying an additional 315,148 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,033,776 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $221,478,000 after buying an additional 169,736 shares during the period. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PHM has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on PulteGroup from $140.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. UBS Group reduced their price objective on PulteGroup from $151.00 to $141.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on PulteGroup from $116.00 to $109.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on PulteGroup from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $134.69.

PulteGroup Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of PHM opened at $105.58 on Wednesday. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 52-week low of $88.07 and a 52-week high of $149.47. The company has a market capitalization of $21.16 billion, a PE ratio of 7.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.29. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $100.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $105.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The construction company reported $2.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.10. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 22.86% and a net margin of 16.45%. The business had revenue of $3.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.86 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.10 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 EPS for the current year.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 17th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.21%.

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.