PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) PT Raised to $131.00 at Jefferies Financial Group

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) had its target price increased by equities researchers at Jefferies Financial Group from $126.00 to $131.00 in a report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the construction company’s stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s price target points to a potential upside of 17.64% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on the company. UBS Group lowered PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the company from $93.00 to $120.00 in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 price objective on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on PulteGroup from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Raymond James lifted their price objective on PulteGroup from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on PulteGroup from $126.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Five 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.com, PulteGroup presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $111.73.

PulteGroup Price Performance

NYSE PHM opened at $111.36 on Wednesday. PulteGroup has a fifty-two week low of $64.41 and a fifty-two week high of $121.07. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $111.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The firm has a market cap of $23.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 1.56.

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

PulteGroup announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to purchase up to 6.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at PulteGroup

In other PulteGroup news, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 2,000 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.09, for a total transaction of $206,180.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 15,389 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,586,452.01. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.83% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PulteGroup

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PHM. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 7,610 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $918,000 after acquiring an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Strategy Asset Managers LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Strategy Asset Managers LLC now owns 6,522 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $787,000 after acquiring an additional 239 shares in the last quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 10.9% in the 1st quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 70,207 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $8,468,000 after acquiring an additional 6,900 shares in the last quarter. Eudaimonia Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the 1st quarter worth approximately $269,000. Finally, Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC now owns 77,294 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $9,323,000 after acquiring an additional 3,254 shares in the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.