PulteGroup Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:PHM)

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM - Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders bought 9,941 call options on the company. This is an increase of 1,498% compared to the typical daily volume of 622 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PHM has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $140.00 to $120.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $151.00 to $141.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $116.00 to $109.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $134.69.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

PHM opened at $103.52 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company's fifty day moving average price is $101.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $105.40. PulteGroup has a 1-year low of $88.07 and a 1-year high of $149.47. The company has a market cap of $20.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.30, a PEG ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 1.29.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The construction company reported $2.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.10. PulteGroup had a net margin of 16.45% and a return on equity of 22.86%. The company had revenue of $3.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.86 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.10 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that PulteGroup will post 12.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The company 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. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 17th. PulteGroup's payout ratio is currently 6.21%.

Institutional Trading of PulteGroup

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. WPG Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 43.0% in the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 349 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. American National Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the first quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Institutional investors own 89.90% of the company's stock.

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.

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