Kentucky Retirement Systems Decreases Stock Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Kentucky Retirement Systems reduced its position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,261 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 196 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in PulteGroup were worth $1,553,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PHM. FMR LLC raised its holdings in PulteGroup by 102.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,040,828 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,297,630,000 after acquiring an additional 4,571,757 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in PulteGroup by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 11,254,274 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,647,364,000 after acquiring an additional 585,735 shares during the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new stake in PulteGroup during the 3rd quarter valued at $66,485,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in PulteGroup by 357.1% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 521,958 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $74,917,000 after buying an additional 407,764 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its stake in PulteGroup by 1,020.0% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 435,925 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $62,568,000 after buying an additional 397,003 shares during the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PulteGroup Trading Down 2.6 %

Shares of PulteGroup stock opened at $103.04 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $20.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.00, a P/E/G ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. The company has a fifty day moving average of $110.87 and a 200 day moving average of $125.40. PulteGroup, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $101.13 and a fifty-two week high of $149.47.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.22. PulteGroup had a net margin of 17.18% and a return on equity of 24.43%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is currently 5.98%.

PulteGroup announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, January 30th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding 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 often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.86.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other PulteGroup news, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total value of $266,125.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 56,617 shares in the company, valued at $6,026,879.65. The trade was a 4.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.40, for a total transaction of $372,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 11,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,209,980.80. The trade was a 23.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 21,191 shares of company stock worth $2,256,367 in the last 90 days. 0.83% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.