PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Increases Stock Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 10.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 39,852 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,700 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $4,340,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in PulteGroup by 74.1% during the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 322 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in PulteGroup in the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 41.9% in the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 444 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. boosted its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 642.2% during the fourth quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 475 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 411 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at PulteGroup

In other news, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total value of $266,125.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 56,617 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,026,879.65. The trade was a 4.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total transaction of $1,617,841.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 74,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,961,727. This represents a 16.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 21,191 shares of company stock valued at $2,256,367. Company insiders own 0.83% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America dropped their price target on PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Citigroup cut their target price on PulteGroup from $146.00 to $119.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.86.

PulteGroup Trading Down 2.5 %

PHM stock opened at $100.90 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $20.43 billion, a PE ratio of 6.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.71. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 52 week low of $100.54 and a 52 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. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $109.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $123.40.

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

PulteGroup announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, January 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to repurchase up to 6.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is presently 5.98%.

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.