Ritholtz Wealth Management Purchases 16,746 Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 29.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 73,807 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 16,746 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $8,038,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in PulteGroup by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 11,254,274 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,647,364,000 after purchasing an additional 585,735 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 102.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,040,828 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,297,630,000 after acquiring an additional 4,571,757 shares during the last quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 0.3% in the third quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. now owns 5,593,179 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $802,789,000 after acquiring an additional 16,871 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 8.6% in the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,968,788 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $326,864,000 after acquiring an additional 235,826 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 7.8% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,864,040 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $267,546,000 after acquiring an additional 135,391 shares during the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $140.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group upgraded shares of PulteGroup from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $154.00 to $148.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wedbush upgraded shares of PulteGroup from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.14.

PulteGroup Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PHM opened at $116.95 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $120.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $126.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.62, a PEG ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.67. PulteGroup, Inc. has a one year low of $100.24 and a one year high of $149.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.73.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The construction company reported $3.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.10 by $0.25. PulteGroup had a net margin of 16.64% and a return on equity of 25.30%. The firm had revenue of $4.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.27 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.90 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 17th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.75%. This is a boost from PulteGroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is presently 6.49%.

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.