Wells Fargo & Company Lowers PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) Price Target to $120.00

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM - Free Report) had its target price decreased by Wells Fargo & Company from $140.00 to $120.00 in a research note published on Monday,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the construction company's stock.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on PHM. 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. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of PulteGroup from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on PulteGroup from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $138.21.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

PHM stock traded up $2.01 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $94.87. The company had a trading volume of 2,870,580 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,996,144. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $102.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $116.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.45, a P/E/G ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.44. PulteGroup has a one year low of $88.07 and a one year high of $149.47.

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

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.93%. PulteGroup's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 5.98%.

PulteGroup announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, January 30th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the construction company to repurchase up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PulteGroup

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Morse Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 26.2% during the third quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc now owns 9,735 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,397,000 after buying an additional 2,020 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 35,191 shares of the construction company's stock worth $5,051,000 after acquiring an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Aldebaran Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 99.1% during the 3rd quarter. Aldebaran Financial Inc. now owns 5,365 shares of the construction company's stock worth $770,000 after purchasing an additional 2,670 shares during the period. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co bought a new position in PulteGroup during the 3rd quarter valued at about $234,000. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in PulteGroup by 21.8% in the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,515 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,366,000 after purchasing an additional 1,706 shares during the period. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.