Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Trims Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund reduced its holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 31.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 40,607 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 19,000 shares during the period. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $4,422,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its position in PulteGroup by 115.1% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 185 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Transcendent Capital Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of PulteGroup during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. JNBA Financial Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the third quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

PulteGroup Price Performance

Shares of PulteGroup stock opened at $106.44 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.24, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.68. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $110.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $125.14. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 12 month low of $100.54 and a 12 month high of $149.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.22. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 24.43% and a net margin of 17.18%. As a group, analysts predict that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is currently 5.98%.

PulteGroup declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, January 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to buy up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America decreased their price target on PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 target price on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 13th. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of PulteGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other PulteGroup news, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.40, for a total value of $372,400.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 11,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,209,980.80. This trade represents a 23.53 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total value of $1,617,841.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 74,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,961,727. This trade represents a 16.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 21,191 shares of company stock worth $2,256,367. 0.75% of the stock is owned by insiders.

PulteGroup Company Profile

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.