Candriam S.C.A. Has $7.70 Million Stock Position in PulteGroup, Inc. $PHM

Key Points

• Candriam S.C.A. reduced its PulteGroup stake by 35.6% in the first quarter, selling 36,242 shares and ending with 65,459 shares valued at about $7.7 million.
• Insiders sold shares recently, including Director Lila Snyder and COO Matthew William Koart, while institutional investors still own a dominant 89.9% of PulteGroup’s stock.
• PulteGroup reported Q1 EPS of $1.79, slightly below estimates, and authorized a $1.5 billion share buyback; analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average target price of $141.43.

Candriam S.C.A. cut its holdings in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM - Free Report) by 35.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 65,459 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 36,242 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.'s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $7,699,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Insider Transactions at PulteGroup

In other news, Director Lila Snyder sold 3,339 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,540 shares of the company's stock, valued at $414,817.20. This represents a 48.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,372,000. The trade was a 20.97% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.75% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PHM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Evercore increased their price target on PulteGroup from $146.00 to $151.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of PulteGroup from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 20th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $159.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of PulteGroup from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $141.43.

PulteGroup Stock Up 0.1%

PHM stock opened at $124.83 on Monday. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $122.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $124.79. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 1-year low of $107.16 and a 1-year high of $144.49. The stock has a market cap of $23.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 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 (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $3.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.40 billion. PulteGroup had a net margin of 12.14% and a return on equity of 16.41%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.57 EPS. Analysts expect that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 9.95 EPS for the current year.

PulteGroup declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, April 23rd that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the construction company to purchase up to 6.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

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

PulteGroup Company 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.

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