Empirical Finance LLC Cuts Holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Empirical Finance LLC decreased its position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 45.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,719 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 6,463 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $841,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its position in shares of PulteGroup by 115.1% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 185 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Transcendent Capital Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PulteGroup during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PulteGroup during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of PulteGroup during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Finally, JNBA Financial Advisors purchased a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the 3rd quarter worth about $43,000. Institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com lowered PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. BTIG Research boosted their target price on PulteGroup from $139.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Oppenheimer dropped their price target on PulteGroup from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.86.

PulteGroup Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PHM opened at $106.55 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $115.02 and a 200 day moving average of $126.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The stock has a market cap of $21.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.24, a P/E/G ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.68. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 12 month low of $100.24 and a 12 month high of $149.47.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.22. PulteGroup had a net margin of 17.18% and a return on equity of 24.43%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.83%. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is currently 5.98%.

PulteGroup declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, January 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the construction company to repurchase up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.