ABC Arbitrage SA Buys Shares of 23,178 PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

ABC Arbitrage SA purchased a new position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 23,178 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,524,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Logan Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in PulteGroup by 67.7% during the third quarter. Logan Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,797 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,124,000 after buying an additional 5,976 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its stake in PulteGroup by 38.1% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 121,299 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $17,410,000 after buying an additional 33,472 shares in the last quarter. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department increased its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 39.8% during the third quarter. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department now owns 39,589 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $5,682,000 after purchasing an additional 11,269 shares in the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP grew its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 3.9% during the third quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 130,257 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $18,696,000 after buying an additional 4,840 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nilsine Partners LLC boosted its holdings in PulteGroup by 929.2% in the fourth quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 20,574 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,240,000 after purchasing an additional 18,575 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on PHM shares. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of PulteGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Oppenheimer cut their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.86.

PulteGroup Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PHM opened at $107.45 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $22.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.30, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.68. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 52 week low of $100.24 and a 52 week high of $149.47. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $113.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $126.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last posted 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 net margin of 17.18% and a return on equity of 24.43%. As a group, research analysts forecast that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is presently 5.98%.

PulteGroup announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, January 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to reacquire up to 6.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at PulteGroup

In other PulteGroup news, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total transaction of $1,617,841.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 74,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,961,727. The trade was a 16.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.40, for a total value of $372,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 11,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,209,980.80. The trade was a 23.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 21,191 shares of company stock worth $2,256,367. 0.83% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.