Sovran Advisors LLC Purchases New Stake in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Sovran Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 2,287 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $257,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Logan Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of PulteGroup by 67.7% in the third quarter. Logan Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,797 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,124,000 after purchasing an additional 5,976 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 38.1% in the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 121,299 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $17,410,000 after purchasing an additional 33,472 shares during the period. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department grew its holdings in PulteGroup by 39.8% in the 3rd quarter. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department now owns 39,589 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $5,682,000 after buying an additional 11,269 shares in the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP increased its position in PulteGroup by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 130,257 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $18,696,000 after buying an additional 4,840 shares during the period. Finally, Nilsine Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 929.2% during the fourth quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 20,574 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,240,000 after buying an additional 18,575 shares in the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at PulteGroup

In related news, 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 value of $372,400.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 11,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,209,980.80. The trade was a 23.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total value of $1,617,841.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,961,727. This represents a 16.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 21,191 shares of company stock worth $2,256,367. 0.83% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on PHM shares. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of PulteGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $146.00 to $119.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on PulteGroup from $198.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.86.

PulteGroup Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of PulteGroup stock opened at $106.67 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $113.44 and its 200 day moving average is $126.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.88 billion, a PE ratio of 7.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.68. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 1 year low of $100.24 and a 1 year high of $149.47. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup declared that its board has approved a share 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 purchase up to 6.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.82%. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is presently 5.98%.

PulteGroup 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.