Eagle Asset Management Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Eagle Asset Management Inc. cut its holdings in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM - Free Report) by 86.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,904 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 104,527 shares during the quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $2,243,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Interval Partners LP acquired a new stake in PulteGroup in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,206,000. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft acquired a new position in PulteGroup during the 2nd quarter worth about $629,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in PulteGroup by 128.4% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 94,588 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $11,409,000 after acquiring an additional 53,175 shares during the period. New Millennium Group LLC lifted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 10,625.8% during the third quarter. New Millennium Group LLC now owns 9,546 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,370,000 after purchasing an additional 9,457 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trustmark National Bank Trust Department lifted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 39.8% during the third quarter. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department now owns 39,589 shares of the construction company's stock worth $5,682,000 after purchasing an additional 11,269 shares in the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on PHM. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Wolfe Research cut PulteGroup from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. BTIG Research increased their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $139.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wedbush reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $168.00 to $165.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $145.00.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

NYSE:PHM traded down $2.02 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $135.63. The stock had a trading volume of 1,520,780 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,831,885. PulteGroup, Inc. has a twelve month low of $86.59 and a twelve month high of $149.47. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $136.60 and a 200 day simple moving average of $126.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.00, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.73.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The construction company reported $3.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.10 by $0.25. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 25.30% and a net margin of 16.64%. The firm had revenue of $4.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.27 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.90 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 17th. This is an increase from PulteGroup's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. PulteGroup's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 5.90%.

Insider Activity at PulteGroup

In other PulteGroup news, Director Thomas J. Folliard sold 19,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.14, for a total value of $2,491,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 45,230 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,931,462.20. This trade represents a 29.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.75% of the company's stock.

PulteGroup 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.