PulteGroup Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:PHM)

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders acquired 9,941 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 1,498% compared to the typical volume of 622 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on PHM. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $168.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wolfe Research downgraded PulteGroup from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. UBS Group increased their price target on PulteGroup from $148.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on PulteGroup from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $145.00.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

PHM opened at $136.53 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The company has a market capitalization of $28.00 billion, a PE ratio of 10.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.63. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $136.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $126.32. PulteGroup has a 1 year low of $86.59 and a 1 year high of $149.47.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The construction company reported $3.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.10 by $0.25. PulteGroup had a net margin of 16.64% and a return on equity of 25.30%. The business had revenue of $4.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.27 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.90 earnings per share. PulteGroup’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that PulteGroup will post 12.94 EPS for the current year.

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The business 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 $0.22 dividend. This is a boost from PulteGroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 17th. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is 5.90%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PulteGroup

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 102.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,040,828 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,297,630,000 after acquiring an additional 4,571,757 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 11,254,274 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,647,364,000 after purchasing an additional 585,735 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup during the 1st quarter worth $68,985,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP bought a new stake in shares of PulteGroup during the 3rd quarter worth $66,485,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 357.1% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 521,958 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $74,917,000 after buying an additional 407,764 shares in the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.