Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt Decreases Position in PulteGroup, Inc. $PHM

Key Points

• Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt significantly reduced its stake in PulteGroup, decreasing its holdings by 80.4% during the second quarter, leaving them with 15,452 shares valued at approximately $1.63 million.
• Analysts have varied ratings on PulteGroup, with one analyst giving it a Strong Buy rating and several others adjusting their price targets upward, now averaging around $136.46.
• PulteGroup declared a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, set to be paid on October 2nd, which translates to an annualized yield of 0.7%.

Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt trimmed its holdings in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM - Free Report) by 80.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,452 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 63,500 shares during the period. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt's holdings in PulteGroup were worth $1,630,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in PulteGroup by 40.3% in the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,486,330 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $358,395,000 after buying an additional 1,001,290 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in PulteGroup by 11.8% in the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,570,022 shares of the construction company's stock worth $264,216,000 after purchasing an additional 271,917 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PulteGroup during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $213,092,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,033,776 shares of the construction company's stock worth $221,478,000 after buying an additional 169,736 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in PulteGroup by 21.2% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,579,792 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $162,403,000 after buying an additional 276,077 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.90% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $132.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $140.00 price target (up previously from $115.00) on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $141.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $128.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $136.46.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

NYSE:PHM traded down $2.15 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $131.95. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,783,612 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,945,900. PulteGroup, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $88.07 and a fifty-two week high of $149.47. The firm's 50 day moving average is $125.53 and its 200-day moving average is $110.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market cap of $26.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.27.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The construction company reported $3.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.92 by $0.11. PulteGroup had a net margin of 15.50% and a return on equity of 21.01%. The business had revenue of $4.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.42 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.83 EPS. The business's revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 16th. PulteGroup's payout ratio is currently 6.58%.

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.