Acadian Asset Management LLC Makes New Investment in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 59,144 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,506,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Benjamin Edwards Inc. acquired a new stake in PulteGroup during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 82 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PulteGroup during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the second quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Candriam S.C.A. acquired a new position in PulteGroup in the second quarter valued at about $33,000. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on PHM. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $129.00 to $117.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. BTIG Research lifted their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $133.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $143.00 to $151.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Bank of America raised their target price on PulteGroup from $135.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on PulteGroup from $141.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Six 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, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $133.14.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Robert Oshaughnessy sold 71,007 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 89,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,043,420.09. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other PulteGroup 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 sale, the director now owns 45,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,931,462.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Robert Oshaughnessy sold 71,007 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 89,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,043,420.09. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 119,000 shares of company stock valued at $15,814,039. Company insiders own 0.83% of the company’s stock.

PulteGroup Stock Down 0.9 %

NYSE:PHM opened at $131.44 on Thursday. PulteGroup, Inc. has a one year low of $68.80 and a one year high of $136.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The company has a market cap of $27.65 billion, a PE ratio of 10.52, a P/E/G ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.62. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $124.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $117.00.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The construction company reported $3.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.56. PulteGroup had a net margin of 16.75% and a return on equity of 25.67%. The firm had revenue of $4.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.49 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.00 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.9 earnings per share for the current year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 17th will be given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 17th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.61%. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.41%.

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.