Larson Financial Group LLC Increases Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 7.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 36,695 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 2,538 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $3,996,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 5.5% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 11,254,274 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,647,364,000 after acquiring an additional 585,735 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 102.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,040,828 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,297,630,000 after purchasing an additional 4,571,757 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 7.8% in the 3rd 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 worth $267,546,000 after purchasing an additional 135,391 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in PulteGroup by 10.0% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,424,119 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $155,856,000 after buying an additional 129,975 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in PulteGroup by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,351,491 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $147,177,000 after buying an additional 19,829 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PHM has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded PulteGroup from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.86.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

NYSE PHM opened at $108.06 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $109.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $124.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.35, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.71. PulteGroup, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $100.54 and a fifty-two week high of $149.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.22. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 24.43% and a net margin of 17.18%. On average, equities analysts forecast that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is presently 5.98%.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other PulteGroup news, 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 value of $1,617,841.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 74,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,961,727. The trade was a 16.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 3,500 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.40, for a total transaction of $372,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 11,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,209,980.80. The trade was a 23.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 21,191 shares of company stock worth $2,256,367. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

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.