PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) Shares Purchased by Trustmark National Bank Trust Department

Trustmark National Bank Trust Department boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM - Free Report) by 39.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 39,589 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 11,269 shares during the period. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department's holdings in PulteGroup were worth $5,682,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of PHM. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in PulteGroup by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 464,217 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $55,993,000 after buying an additional 5,022 shares during the last quarter. Shell Asset Management Co. boosted its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 135.5% during the first quarter. Shell Asset Management Co. now owns 8,932 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,077,000 after acquiring an additional 5,140 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in PulteGroup by 108.6% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 16,430 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,981,000 after purchasing an additional 8,555 shares in the last quarter. Interval Partners LP acquired a new position in PulteGroup in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,206,000. Finally, Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft acquired a new stake in shares of PulteGroup during the 2nd quarter worth about $629,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on PulteGroup from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Bank of America upped their target price on PulteGroup from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on PulteGroup from $141.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, BTIG Research increased their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $139.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $145.00.

PulteGroup Price Performance

PHM stock opened at $128.06 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $26.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 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, Inc. has a 1 year low of $86.59 and a 1 year high of $149.47. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $137.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $125.67.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The construction company reported $3.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.10 by $0.25. PulteGroup had a net margin of 16.64% and a return on equity of 25.30%. The company had revenue of $4.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.27 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.90 earnings per share. PulteGroup's revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict 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 given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 17th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.69%. This is an increase from PulteGroup's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. PulteGroup's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other PulteGroup news, Director Thomas J. Folliard sold 19,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.14, for a total value of $2,491,660.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 45,230 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,931,462.20. This trade represents a 29.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Robert Oshaughnessy sold 71,007 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.83, for a total transaction of $9,573,873.81. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 89,323 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,043,420.09. This trade represents a 44.29 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.

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