PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) Rating Increased to Outperform at Wedbush

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) was upgraded by analysts at Wedbush from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report issued on Friday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The firm presently has a $135.00 target price on the construction company’s stock. Wedbush’s price target suggests a potential upside of 25.42% from the company’s previous close.

PHM has been the subject of a number of other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $168.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $198.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on PulteGroup from $148.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $144.14.

PulteGroup Price Performance

Shares of PulteGroup stock opened at $107.64 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.94, a P/E/G ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 1.62. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $124.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $126.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. PulteGroup has a 1-year low of $99.03 and a 1-year high of $149.47.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The construction company reported $3.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.10 by $0.25. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 25.30% and a net margin of 16.64%. The business had revenue of $4.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.90 EPS. PulteGroup’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that PulteGroup will post 12.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of PulteGroup

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 17.7% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,190 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $238,000 after acquiring an additional 329 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in PulteGroup by 70.7% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 642 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares in the last quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its stake in PulteGroup by 3,118.4% during the 3rd quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 376,717 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $54,070,000 after purchasing an additional 365,012 shares in the last quarter. Logan Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in PulteGroup by 67.7% during the 3rd quarter. Logan Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,797 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,124,000 after buying an additional 5,976 shares during the period. Finally, Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas bought a new position in PulteGroup in the third quarter valued at approximately $2,973,000. Institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

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.