Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. trimmed its stake in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM - Free Report) by 1.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 525,662 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 5,764 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 0.26% of PulteGroup worth $54,038,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Meridian Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in PulteGroup by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,224 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,440,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,384 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $479,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. lifted its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 43.0% during the 4th quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 349 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. NDVR Inc. boosted its holdings in PulteGroup by 6.0% in the 4th quarter. NDVR Inc. now owns 1,984 shares of the construction company's stock worth $216,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the period. Finally, Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in PulteGroup by 10.0% in the 4th quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 1,271 shares of the construction company's stock worth $138,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the period. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on PHM. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on PulteGroup from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded PulteGroup from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $140.00 to $120.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $134.69.

PulteGroup Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PHM traded down $2.07 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $109.27. 1,616,063 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,027,601. The company's 50 day moving average is $102.25 and its 200 day moving average is $104.87. PulteGroup, Inc. has a one year low of $88.07 and a one year high of $149.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.90 billion, a PE ratio of 7.71, a P/E/G ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 1.29.

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 company had revenue of $3.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.86 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.10 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 17th. PulteGroup's dividend payout ratio is 6.21%.

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.