Cypress Capital Group Has $694,000 Stock Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Cypress Capital Group trimmed its position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 21.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 6,370 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 1,770 shares during the period. Cypress Capital Group’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $694,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 3.0% in the third quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,054 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $438,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 16.7% in the fourth quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 622 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,572 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $280,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in PulteGroup by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,224 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,440,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in PulteGroup by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,598 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $516,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at PulteGroup

In other news, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total value of $1,617,841.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 74,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,961,727. This represents a 16.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total transaction of $266,125.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 56,617 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,026,879.65. The trade was a 4.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 21,191 shares of company stock valued at $2,256,367. 0.75% of the stock is owned by insiders.

PulteGroup Trading Up 3.2 %

Shares of PulteGroup stock opened at $106.15 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $109.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $124.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 52-week low of $100.54 and a 52-week high of $149.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.49 billion, a PE ratio of 7.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.71.

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 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, analysts expect that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 EPS for the current year.

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

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PHM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Oppenheimer cut their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut 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. Bank of America cut 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. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut 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 investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.86.

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.