Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Invests $2.96 Million in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 27,211 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $2,963,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nilsine Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 929.2% in the 4th quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 20,574 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $2,240,000 after acquiring an additional 18,575 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 4,559 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $496,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Argyle Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Argyle Capital Management LLC now owns 42,241 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $4,600,000 after acquiring an additional 641 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 416.0% in the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 12,775 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,391,000 after acquiring an additional 10,299 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the 4th quarter valued at about $275,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on PHM shares. Seaport Res Ptn raised PulteGroup from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. UBS Group lowered their price target on PulteGroup from $151.00 to $141.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on PulteGroup from $116.00 to $109.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Barclays lowered their price target on PulteGroup from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $135.00 price objective on shares of PulteGroup in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $134.69.

PulteGroup Trading Up 1.5%

PHM traded up $1.57 on Friday, hitting $104.34. 1,402,057 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,998,465. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $100.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $111.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 12 month low of $88.07 and a 12 month high of $149.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.91 billion, a PE ratio of 7.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.37.

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

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 17th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 17th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.84%. PulteGroup's payout ratio is 6.21%.

PulteGroup announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, January 30th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the construction company to repurchase up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's board believes its shares are 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.