Victory Capital Management Inc. Trims Stock Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Victory Capital Management Inc. cut its stake in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM - Free Report) by 8.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 956,353 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 92,543 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.44% of PulteGroup worth $98,715,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Greenhaven Associates Inc. boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. now owns 5,726,368 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $591,076,000 after acquiring an additional 24,350 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,484,469 shares of the construction company's stock worth $406,125,000 after acquiring an additional 95,945 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 13.3% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,432,965 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $328,261,000 after buying an additional 522,032 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 2.0% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,115,877 shares of the construction company's stock worth $230,731,000 after purchasing an additional 61,953 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 54.6% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,003,713 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $310,043,000 after purchasing an additional 1,060,466 shares in the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at PulteGroup

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group downgraded PulteGroup from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $93.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Raymond James reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $135.00 price objective (up previously from $120.00) on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Wedbush restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $85.00 price target on shares of PulteGroup in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on PulteGroup from $116.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $111.73.

PulteGroup Stock Up 2.5 %

PHM stock traded up $2.79 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $116.64. 1,873,886 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,811,681. The stock has a market cap of $24.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.34, a P/E/G ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. PulteGroup, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $65.16 and a fifty-two week high of $121.07. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $112.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $100.51.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.21 by $0.07. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 25.81% and a net margin of 16.63%. The company had revenue of $4.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.63 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, January 30th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the construction company to buy up to 6.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.