PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its stake in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM - Free Report) by 3.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 269,649 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 8,308 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.13% of PulteGroup worth $27,720,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 20.5% in the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 15,388 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,582,000 after purchasing an additional 2,613 shares during the last quarter. Vest Financial LLC raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 1,311.3% in the 1st quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 312,723 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $32,148,000 after purchasing an additional 290,564 shares during the last quarter. Hudson Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 8.6% in the 1st quarter. Hudson Capital Management LLC now owns 41,305 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $4,246,000 after purchasing an additional 3,266 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 103,800.0% in the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 5,195 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $534,000 after purchasing an additional 5,190 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 15.9% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 909 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $93,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PulteGroup Price Performance

PulteGroup stock traded up $5.18 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $114.06. The company had a trading volume of 3,864,547 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,166,695. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $102.78 and its 200 day simple moving average is $104.71. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 1-year low of $88.07 and a 1-year high of $149.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.86 billion, a PE ratio of 8.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The construction company reported $2.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.10. PulteGroup had a net margin of 16.45% and a return on equity of 22.86%. The firm had revenue of $3.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.86 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.10 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 17th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.77%. PulteGroup's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.21%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $151.00 to $141.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $135.00 price target on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $116.00 to $109.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $135.08.

PulteGroup Company 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.