J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Sells 38,320 Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG trimmed its holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 17.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 178,945 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 38,320 shares during the quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $19,487,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Morse Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 2,020 shares during the last quarter. Aldebaran Financial Inc. increased its stake in PulteGroup by 99.1% in the 3rd quarter. Aldebaran Financial Inc. now owns 5,365 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $770,000 after buying an additional 2,670 shares during the period. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co bought a new stake in PulteGroup during the 3rd quarter valued at about $234,000. World Investment Advisors LLC boosted 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 valued at $1,366,000 after buying an additional 1,706 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in PulteGroup in the 3rd quarter worth about $732,000. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PulteGroup Trading Up 2.2 %

NYSE PHM opened at $94.87 on Monday. The stock has a market cap 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. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 12-month low of $88.07 and a 12-month high of $149.47. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $102.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $116.03.

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

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

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.93%. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is currently 5.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total transaction of $266,125.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 56,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,026,879.65. This trade represents a 4.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.40, for a total transaction of $372,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 11,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,209,980.80. This represents a 23.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 21,191 shares of company stock valued at $2,256,367 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PHM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $140.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on PulteGroup from $140.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $146.00 to $119.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.21.

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.