Westpac Banking Corp Sells 5,291 Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Westpac Banking Corp trimmed its stake in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 14.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 32,135 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 5,291 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $3,500,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of PHM. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its position 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 during the period. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,572 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $280,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,224 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,440,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of PulteGroup by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,384 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $479,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital lifted its holdings in PulteGroup by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 3,050 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $328,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

PulteGroup Trading Up 1.2 %

PHM opened at $104.32 on Thursday. PulteGroup, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $99.58 and a fifty-two week high of $149.47. The company has a market cap of $21.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $106.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $120.64.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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, sell-side analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current year.

PulteGroup declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan 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 plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.84%. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is currently 5.98%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 74,758 shares in the company, 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 at this link. Also, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total value of $266,125.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 56,617 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,026,879.65. This represents a 4.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 21,191 shares of company stock valued at $2,256,367 in the last ninety days. 0.76% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on PHM. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price target on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Citigroup decreased their target price on PulteGroup from $146.00 to $119.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on PulteGroup from $140.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, PulteGroup presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.86.

PulteGroup Company 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.