PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Increases Holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM - Free Report) by 10.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 39,852 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 3,700 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.'s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $4,340,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 102.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,040,828 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,297,630,000 after buying an additional 4,571,757 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in PulteGroup by 5.5% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 11,254,274 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,647,364,000 after acquiring an additional 585,735 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new position in PulteGroup in the third quarter worth $66,485,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its stake in PulteGroup by 357.1% in the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 521,958 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $74,917,000 after purchasing an additional 407,764 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of PulteGroup by 1,020.0% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 435,925 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $62,568,000 after purchasing an additional 397,003 shares during the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $135.00 price target on shares of PulteGroup in a report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup dropped their price objective on PulteGroup from $146.00 to $119.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on PulteGroup from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $140.86.

PulteGroup Price Performance

NYSE PHM traded up $1.03 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $103.97. The company had a trading volume of 1,527,862 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,851,616. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $109.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $123.08. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 52 week low of $100.54 and a 52 week high of $149.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.07, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.22. PulteGroup had a net margin of 17.18% and a return on equity of 24.43%. Equities research analysts expect that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. PulteGroup's dividend payout ratio is 5.98%.

PulteGroup declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, January 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the construction company to purchase up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at PulteGroup

In other PulteGroup news, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 $7,961,727. This trade represents a 16.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total value of $266,125.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 56,617 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,026,879.65. The trade was a 4.23 % 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 valued at $2,256,367. Company insiders own 0.83% 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.