PulteGroup, Inc. $PHM Shares Bought by River Street Advisors LLC

River Street Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 94.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,208 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,851 shares during the period. River Street Advisors LLC’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $2,141,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in PulteGroup during the 4th quarter worth about $466,653,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 126.5% during 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 in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in PulteGroup by 120.4% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,703,049 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $225,024,000 after purchasing an additional 930,287 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its position in PulteGroup by 5,485.0% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 655,033 shares during the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Matthew William Koart sold 7,457 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $894,840.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 28,100 shares in the company, valued at $3,372,000. This trade represents a 20.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, 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 sale, the director directly owned 3,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $414,817.20. This trade represents a 48.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.75% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on PHM shares. Seaport Research Partners reiterated a “sell” rating and set a $100.00 price target (down from $155.00) on shares of PulteGroup in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on PulteGroup from $132.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of PulteGroup from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Evercore increased 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, Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of PulteGroup in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Ten research 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 has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.71.

PulteGroup Stock Up 1.4%

NYSE:PHM opened at $137.74 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $121.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $124.30. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 52-week low of $104.04 and a 52-week high of $144.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.94. The company has a market cap of $26.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.20.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last released its 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). PulteGroup had a return on equity of 16.41% and a net margin of 12.14%.The firm had revenue of $3.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.57 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 9.95 EPS for the current year.

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

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

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

PulteGroup 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.