9,800 Shares in PulteGroup, Inc. $PHM Bought by Louisiana State Employees Retirement System

Key Points

• Louisiana State Employees Retirement System opened a new position in PulteGroup during the first quarter, buying 9,800 shares worth about $1.153 million.
• PulteGroup recently reported quarterly EPS of $1.79, missing estimates by a penny, while revenue of $3.41 billion slightly beat expectations despite a 12.4% year-over-year decline.
• The company approved a $1.5 billion share repurchase program and paid a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, giving it an annualized yield of about 0.8%.

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 9,800 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $1,153,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rachor Investment Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 158.5% in the first quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 274 shares of the construction company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the period. DV Equities LLC acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. bought a new stake in PulteGroup during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, High Point Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in PulteGroup during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.90% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded PulteGroup from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on PulteGroup from $132.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Evercore raised their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $146.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $136.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners reiterated a "sell" rating and set a $100.00 target price (down from $155.00) on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, PulteGroup has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $140.71.

PulteGroup Trading Up 0.1%

PulteGroup stock opened at $133.79 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $122.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $124.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 12 month low of $107.07 and a 12 month high of $144.49. The stock has a market cap of $25.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.18.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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). The firm had revenue of $3.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.40 billion. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 16.41% and a net margin of 12.14%.PulteGroup's revenue for the quarter was down 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.57 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 9.95 EPS for the current year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th were paid 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 yield of 0.8%. PulteGroup's payout ratio is currently 10.06%.

PulteGroup declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, April 23rd that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in 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 usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other PulteGroup news, COO Matthew William Koart sold 7,457 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $894,840.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 28,100 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,372,000. The trade was a 20.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Lila Snyder sold 3,339 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the director owned 3,540 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $414,817.20. This represents a 48.54% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.75% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About PulteGroup

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.

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