Royce & Associates LP Sells 12,717 Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Royce & Associates LP lowered its holdings in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 13.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 84,730 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 12,717 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $12,161,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. WR Wealth Planners LLC increased its position in PulteGroup by 54.7% during the 2nd quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 232 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 115.1% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 185 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in PulteGroup during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new stake in PulteGroup during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

PulteGroup Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:PHM opened at $128.89 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $26.43 billion, a PE ratio of 9.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.63. The company’s 50 day moving average is $137.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $125.27. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 52 week low of $86.59 and a 52 week high of $149.47. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The construction company reported $3.35 earnings per share 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.27 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.90 EPS. PulteGroup’s quarterly revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.68%. This is a positive change from PulteGroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 17th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 5.90%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Thomas J. Folliard sold 19,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.14, for a total transaction of $2,491,660.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 45,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,931,462.20. This represents a 29.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Robert Oshaughnessy sold 71,007 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.83, for a total value of $9,573,873.81. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 89,323 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,043,420.09. The trade was a 44.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.83% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on PHM shares. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $148.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on PulteGroup from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target 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. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $145.00.

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.