Investors Buy High Volume of PulteGroup Call Options (NYSE:PHM)

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Investors purchased 9,941 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 1,498% compared to the average daily volume of 622 call options.

Insider Activity at PulteGroup

In related news, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total value of $266,125.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 56,617 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,026,879.65. The trade was a 4.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total value of $1,617,841.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 74,758 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,961,727. This represents a 16.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 21,191 shares of company stock worth $2,256,367. Company insiders own 0.76% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of PulteGroup

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of PulteGroup during the 4th quarter valued at about $427,562,000. Amundi grew its holdings in PulteGroup by 77.9% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,636,562 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $180,775,000 after purchasing an additional 716,716 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 11,937,866 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,300,034,000 after buying an additional 683,592 shares during the period. Man Group plc lifted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 136.8% during the 4th quarter. Man Group plc now owns 988,963 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $107,698,000 after buying an additional 571,251 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in PulteGroup in the 4th quarter valued at $47,133,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.90% of the company's stock.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

NYSE PHM traded up $2.62 on Friday, reaching $104.51. 1,439,479 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,999,184. PulteGroup has a fifty-two week low of $88.07 and a fifty-two week high of $149.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. The firm has a market cap of $20.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.10, a P/E/G ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.44. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $101.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $113.66.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The construction company reported $2.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.47 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $3.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 posted $3.10 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that PulteGroup will post 12.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 17th. PulteGroup's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 6.21%.

PulteGroup announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, January 30th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the construction company to repurchase up to 6.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on PHM shares. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group reduced their price target on PulteGroup from $151.00 to $141.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on PulteGroup from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on PulteGroup from $140.00 to $124.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn upgraded PulteGroup from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $134.69.

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.