Metis Global Partners LLC Increases Stock Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Metis Global Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 23.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,280 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,302 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $1,763,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of PHM. WR Wealth Planners LLC raised its position in PulteGroup by 54.7% in the 2nd quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 232 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in PulteGroup by 115.1% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 185 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in PulteGroup during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the second quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

PulteGroup Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE PHM opened at $128.89 on Friday. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 52 week low of $86.59 and a 52 week high of $149.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.51, a PEG ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a fifty day moving average of $137.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $125.17.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The construction company reported $3.35 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.10 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $4.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.27 billion. PulteGroup had a net margin of 16.64% and a return on equity of 25.30%. The firm’s revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.90 EPS. On average, analysts predict that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.94 earnings per share for the current year.

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is a positive change from PulteGroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 17th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 5.90%.

Insider Activity at PulteGroup

In other PulteGroup news, Director Thomas J. Folliard sold 19,000 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.14, for a total transaction of $2,491,660.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 45,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,931,462.20. The trade was a 29.58 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Robert Oshaughnessy sold 71,007 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.83, for a total value of $9,573,873.81. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 89,323 shares in the company, valued at $12,043,420.09. The trade was a 44.29 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.83% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on PulteGroup from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $141.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Raymond James upped their price objective on PulteGroup from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Wolfe Research cut PulteGroup from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $145.00.

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.