Vicus Capital Increases Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Vicus Capital raised its position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 23.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,954 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 377 shares during the quarter. Vicus Capital’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $213,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cromwell Holdings LLC boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 17.2% in the third quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 565 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Concord Wealth Partners boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 1.7% in the third quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 5,002 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $718,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 3.0% in the third quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,054 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $438,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 16.7% in the fourth quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 622 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $68,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,572 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $280,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

PulteGroup Trading Up 0.7 %

NYSE PHM opened at $107.45 on Friday. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 52-week low of $100.24 and a 52-week high of $149.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.30, a P/E/G ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.68. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $113.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $126.35.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities research analysts expect that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.43 EPS for the current year.

PulteGroup declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, January 30th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the construction company to purchase up to 6.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.82%. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling at PulteGroup

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on PHM shares. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of PulteGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $140.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.86.

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.