Barclays Lowers PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) Price Target to $125.00

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM - Free Report) had its price target cut by Barclays from $140.00 to $125.00 in a research report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the construction company's stock.

A number of other research firms have also commented on PHM. StockNews.com lowered shares of PulteGroup from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Oppenheimer cut their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $168.00 to $165.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group raised PulteGroup from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $154.00 to $148.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on PulteGroup from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $144.14.

PulteGroup Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE:PHM traded up $0.18 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $117.11. 2,441,237 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,968,594. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $120.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $126.86. PulteGroup has a one year low of $100.24 and a one year high of $149.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The construction company reported $3.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.10 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $4.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.27 billion. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 25.30% and a net margin of 16.64%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.90 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that PulteGroup will post 12.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th were paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.75%. This is a positive change from PulteGroup's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 17th. PulteGroup's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 6.49%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PulteGroup

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PHM. FCG Investment Co increased its holdings in PulteGroup by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. FCG Investment Co now owns 3,377 shares of the construction company's stock worth $368,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 24.9% in the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 9,874 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,075,000 after purchasing an additional 1,966 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Oklahoma bought a new stake in PulteGroup during the fourth quarter worth $277,000. Sharp Financial Services LLC raised its position in PulteGroup by 86.0% in the 4th quarter. Sharp Financial Services LLC now owns 2,660 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $290,000 after buying an additional 1,230 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Trust Company N.A lifted its stake in PulteGroup by 8.4% during the 4th quarter. Cetera Trust Company N.A now owns 9,147 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $996,000 after acquiring an additional 705 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.