PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) Receives Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM - Get Free Report) has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the thirteen ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $106.47.

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $91.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $116.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Wedbush reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $85.00 price target on shares of PulteGroup in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Barclays upped their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $126.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Raymond James upped their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, February 5th.

PulteGroup Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PHM traded down $0.51 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $105.45. 2,319,184 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,791,484. The company's 50-day moving average is $110.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The company has a market capitalization of $22.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.03, a PEG ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.56. PulteGroup has a 1 year low of $62.18 and a 1 year high of $121.07.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.21 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $4.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.47 billion. PulteGroup had a net margin of 16.20% and a return on equity of 25.97%. The business's revenue was down 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.63 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that PulteGroup will post 11.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 30th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the construction company to purchase up to 6.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. PulteGroup's dividend payout ratio is presently 6.81%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Brien P. O'meara sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.09, for a total transaction of $206,180.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 15,389 shares in the company, valued at $1,586,452.01. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.83% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PulteGroup

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PHM. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in PulteGroup during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $381,960,000. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in PulteGroup by 29.4% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,850,407 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $203,232,000 after acquiring an additional 1,101,565 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in PulteGroup by 54.6% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,003,713 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $310,043,000 after acquiring an additional 1,060,466 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in PulteGroup by 36.3% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,651,100 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $152,982,000 after acquiring an additional 972,310 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the fourth quarter worth $37,289,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.90% of the company's stock.

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.