Todd N. Sheldon Sells 15,191 Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) Stock

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total transaction of $1,617,841.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 74,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,961,727. This represents a 16.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

PulteGroup Price Performance

PHM opened at $107.45 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The company has a market capitalization of $22.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.30, a P/E/G ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.68. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $113.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $126.35. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 1 year low of $100.24 and a 1 year high of $149.47.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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, analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The company 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 dividend of $0.22 per share. 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 5.98%.

PulteGroup declared that its board has initiated a share 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 repurchase up to 6.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on PHM. Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of PulteGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Friday, January 31st. BTIG Research lifted their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $139.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $146.00 to $119.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, PulteGroup currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.86.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PulteGroup

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 18.4% in the 3rd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 463 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $66,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 17.2% in the 3rd quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 565 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $81,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Concord Wealth Partners boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 5,002 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $718,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,054 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $438,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 622 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.