Burney Co. Cuts Position in PulteGroup, Inc. $PHM

Burney Co. lowered its holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 71.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 4,743 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 11,805 shares during the quarter. Burney Co.’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $558,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,555,304 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,589,495,000 after acquiring an additional 655,033 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in PulteGroup by 126.5% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,284,197 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $502,366,000 after purchasing an additional 2,392,580 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in PulteGroup by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,000,920 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $469,148,000 after purchasing an additional 377,003 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in PulteGroup in the fourth quarter valued at $466,653,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in PulteGroup by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,257,211 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $264,681,000 after purchasing an additional 123,793 shares during the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on PHM shares. Seaport Research Partners reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $100.00 price target (down from $155.00) on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Evercore increased their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $146.00 to $151.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $136.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $159.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $133.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $141.43.

PulteGroup Stock Up 0.6%

PHM opened at $123.72 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The firm has a market cap of $23.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.97, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.18. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 52 week low of $107.16 and a 52 week high of $144.49. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $122.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $124.75.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.80 by ($0.01). PulteGroup had a net margin of 12.14% and a return on equity of 16.41%. The firm had revenue of $3.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.40 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.57 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 9.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th were issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is 10.06%.

PulteGroup announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, April 23rd that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the construction company to buy up to 6.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at PulteGroup

In related news, Director Lila Snyder sold 3,339 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.18, for a total transaction of $391,264.02. Following the sale, the director owned 3,540 shares in the company, valued at approximately $414,817.20. This trade represents a 48.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Matthew William Koart sold 7,457 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total transaction of $894,840.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 28,100 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,372,000. This trade represents a 20.97% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

PulteGroup Profile

PulteGroup, Inc (NYSE: PHM) is a U.S.-based residential homebuilder that designs, constructs and sells single-family homes and develops master-planned communities. The company operates multiple national and regional brands that target different buyer segments, including first-time buyers, move-up buyers and active-adult customers. Its operations encompass land acquisition and development, home design and construction, community amenities and ongoing customer service and warranty programs.

PulteGroup markets homes under several well-known brands, such as Pulte Homes, Centex and Del Webb, among others, offering a range of product types from entry-level detached homes to larger, higher-end residences and age-restricted active-adult communities.