Citigroup Cuts PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) Price Target to $128.00

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) had its target price cut by Citigroup from $135.00 to $128.00 in a report issued on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the construction company’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on PHM. Citizens Jmp initiated coverage on shares of PulteGroup in a report on Wednesday. They set a “market outperform” rating and a $145.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $154.00 to $134.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Weiss Ratings cut PulteGroup from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on PulteGroup from $150.00 to $132.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $135.92.

PulteGroup Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PHM opened at $132.19 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The business has a 50-day moving average of $121.58 and a 200-day moving average of $122.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.18, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.33. PulteGroup has a fifty-two week low of $88.07 and a fifty-two week high of $142.11.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The construction company reported $2.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $4.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.31 billion. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 19.58% and a net margin of 14.93%.The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.35 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that PulteGroup will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 16th were paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. This is an increase from PulteGroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 16th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is 8.01%.

Institutional Trading of PulteGroup

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PHM. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 11.7% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 52,149 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $5,361,000 after buying an additional 5,471 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 23.6% in the first quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,108 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $320,000 after acquiring an additional 593 shares in the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in PulteGroup during the first quarter worth about $462,000. MBB Public Markets I LLC acquired a new stake in PulteGroup in the 1st quarter worth about $296,000. Finally, Integrity Alliance LLC. bought a new stake in PulteGroup in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,046,000. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting PulteGroup

Here are the key news stories impacting PulteGroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citizens initiated coverage of PulteGroup with a Market Outperform (buy) recommendation, a clear upside catalyst that can attract investor inflows. Citizens Jmp Begins Coverage on PulteGroup
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually large call-option activity: nearly 10k calls traded (a ~1,498% jump over normal), indicating speculative or hedged bullish bets that likely pushed intraday buying and implied-volatility interest. Investors Purchase High Volume of Call Options on PulteGroup
• Positive Sentiment: Media pieces highlighting strong multi?year returns (investors up ~198% over five years) and Wall Street optimism provide supportive sentiment for longer-term holders and momentum buyers. Those who invested in PulteGroup five years ago are up 198% Wall Street Bulls Look Optimistic About PulteGroup
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry teardown and “why it’s trading” pieces provide context and may draw retail/institutional attention, but offer mixed, non?actionable takeaways. Home Builders Stocks Q3 Teardown: PulteGroup Vs The Rest Why PulteGroup Stock Is Trading Up Today
• Negative Sentiment: Citigroup reduced its price target from $135 to $128 and set a Neutral rating — a formal signal that could cap upside for some investors and weigh on near-term sentiment. Citigroup Lowers Price Target on PulteGroup
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo lowered expectations for PHM as well, adding downward analyst pressure that could prompt profit-taking after recent gains. Wells Fargo Lowers Expectations for PulteGroup

About PulteGroup

PulteGroup, Inc (NYSE: PHM) is a U.S.-based residential homebuilder that designs, constructs and sells single-family homes and develops master-planned communities. The company operates multiple national and regional brands that target different buyer segments, including first-time buyers, move-up buyers and active-adult customers. Its operations encompass land acquisition and development, home design and construction, community amenities and ongoing customer service and warranty programs.

PulteGroup markets homes under several well-known brands, such as Pulte Homes, Centex and Del Webb, among others, offering a range of product types from entry-level detached homes to larger, higher-end residences and age-restricted active-adult communities.