PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) Shares Sold by D Orazio & Associates Inc.

D Orazio & Associates Inc. cut its position in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 6.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,818 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 252 shares during the period. D Orazio & Associates Inc.’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $416,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of PHM. Logan Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 5,976 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its holdings 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 buying an additional 33,472 shares during the period. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department lifted its position in PulteGroup by 39.8% in the third 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 during the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 3.9% during the third 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, New Millennium Group LLC boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 10,625.8% during the 3rd quarter. New Millennium Group LLC now owns 9,546 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,370,000 after purchasing an additional 9,457 shares during the period. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

Shares of PulteGroup stock opened at $105.85 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.20, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.68. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $115.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $127.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.73. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 12 month low of $100.24 and a 12 month high of $149.47.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last announced its 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, equities analysts forecast that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.43 earnings per share for the current year.

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

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.83%. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 5.98%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on PHM shares. UBS Group upped their price target on PulteGroup from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 13th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Bank of America cut their price target on PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price objective on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.86.

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.