PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) Price Target Increased to $113.00 by Analysts at Royal Bank of Canada

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) had its target price raised by Royal Bank of Canada from $106.00 to $113.00 in a research report released on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a sector perform rating on the construction company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group downgraded shares of PulteGroup from a buy rating to a neutral rating and boosted their target price for the company from $93.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Wedbush restated a neutral rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $116.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of PulteGroup from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Saturday, March 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $91.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $110.73.

PulteGroup Price Performance

Shares of PHM opened at $112.26 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.69 billion, a PE ratio of 8.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.86. PulteGroup has a 1-year low of $64.41 and a 1-year high of $121.07. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $110.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $99.05.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.21 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $4.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.47 billion. PulteGroup had a net margin of 16.63% and a return on equity of 25.81%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.63 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that PulteGroup will post 11.79 EPS for the current year.

PulteGroup declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, January 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to reacquire up to 6.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.71%. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.41%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.09, for a total transaction of $206,180.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 15,389 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,586,452.01. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.83% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of PulteGroup

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of PHM. CWM LLC grew its stake in PulteGroup by 33.3% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 10,449 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $774,000 after acquiring an additional 2,609 shares in the last quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in PulteGroup by 25.6% during the 3rd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 25,237 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,869,000 after acquiring an additional 5,140 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its stake in PulteGroup by 11.1% during the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 27,619 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,045,000 after acquiring an additional 2,750 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA grew its stake in PulteGroup by 25.0% during the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 859 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Riverwater Partners LLC purchased a new stake in PulteGroup during the 3rd quarter valued at about $232,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.90% 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.