PulteGroup, Inc. $PHM Shares Sold by Swedbank AB

Key Points

• Swedbank AB trimmed its PulteGroup stake by 1.5% in the first quarter, selling 8,536 shares and ending with 562,594 shares valued at about $66.2 million.
• PulteGroup’s recent results were mixed: quarterly EPS of $1.79 narrowly missed expectations, while revenue of $3.41 billion slightly beat estimates but still fell 12.4% year over year.
• The company is returning capital to shareholders through a new $1.5 billion share buyback authorization and a quarterly dividend of $0.26 per share, while analysts currently rate the stock a “Moderate Buy” with an average target of $141.43.

Swedbank AB reduced its holdings in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM - Free Report) by 1.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 562,594 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 8,536 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB owned 0.30% of PulteGroup worth $66,167,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PHM. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup during the fourth quarter worth about $466,653,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 126.5% during the 4th 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 buying an additional 2,392,580 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its position in PulteGroup by 5,485.0% during the 4th quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 930,622 shares of the construction company's stock worth $109,125,000 after acquiring an additional 913,959 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position 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 acquiring an additional 655,033 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Milford Funds Ltd. purchased a new position in PulteGroup in the 4th quarter worth approximately $68,379,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.90% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other PulteGroup news, Director Lila Snyder sold 3,339 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.18, for a total transaction of $391,264.02. Following the sale, the director owned 3,540 shares in the company, valued at $414,817.20. This represents a 48.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Matthew William Koart sold 7,457 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $894,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.75% of the stock is owned by insiders.

PulteGroup Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:PHM opened at $129.76 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $24.72 billion, a PE ratio of 12.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $122.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $124.71. 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 12-month low of $107.16 and a 12-month high of $144.49.

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 company 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 was down 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.57 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 9.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, April 23rd that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the construction company to repurchase up to 6.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 16th were paid a $0.26 dividend. 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%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PHM has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Seaport Research Partners reiterated a "sell" rating and set a $100.00 price objective (down from $155.00) on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of PulteGroup from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $159.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $170.00 to $150.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded PulteGroup from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $141.43.

PulteGroup 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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