Simmons Bank Makes New Investment in PulteGroup, Inc. $PHM

Simmons Bank acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm acquired 16,460 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,936,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of PulteGroup during the fourth quarter worth approximately $466,653,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 126.5% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,284,197 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $502,366,000 after acquiring an additional 2,392,580 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 5,485.0% in the 4th quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 930,622 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $109,125,000 after acquiring an additional 913,959 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,555,304 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,589,495,000 after acquiring an additional 655,033 shares during the period. Finally, Milford Funds Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $68,379,000. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other PulteGroup news, Director Lila Snyder sold 3,339 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.18, for a total value of $391,264.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $414,817.20. The trade was a 48.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Matthew William Koart sold 7,457 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $894,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 28,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,372,000. This trade represents a 20.97% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.75% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

Shares of PHM stock opened at $137.05 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $121.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $124.47. PulteGroup, Inc. has a one year low of $104.04 and a one year high of $144.49. The stock has a market cap of $26.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $3.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.40 billion. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 16.41% and a net margin of 12.14%.PulteGroup’s quarterly revenue was down 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.57 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 9.95 EPS for the current year.

PulteGroup announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, April 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the construction company to repurchase up to 6.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of PulteGroup from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Seaport Research Partners restated a “sell” rating and issued a $100.00 price objective (down from $155.00) on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Barclays dropped their price objective on PulteGroup from $115.00 to $112.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Evercore lifted their target price on PulteGroup from $146.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on PulteGroup from $136.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.71.

PulteGroup Company Profile

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.