Woodline Partners LP Buys 144,300 Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Woodline Partners LP boosted its stake in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM - Free Report) by 261.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 199,519 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 144,300 shares during the quarter. Woodline Partners LP owned approximately 0.10% of PulteGroup worth $21,728,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PHM. Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of PulteGroup during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. grew its stake in PulteGroup by 43.0% in the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 349 shares of the construction company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in PulteGroup during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in PulteGroup during the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. grew its position in shares of PulteGroup by 642.2% during the 4th quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 475 shares of the construction company's stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 411 shares in the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on PHM shares. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $116.00 to $109.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on PulteGroup from $140.00 to $120.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $134.69.

PulteGroup Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of NYSE:PHM opened at $101.17 on Wednesday. The business's 50-day moving average is $100.85 and its 200 day moving average is $110.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. 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 $20.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.88, a P/E/G ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.37.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The construction company reported $2.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $3.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.86 billion. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 24.43% and a net margin of 17.18%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.10 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 17th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.87%. PulteGroup's payout ratio is 6.21%.

PulteGroup announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, January 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to purchase up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.