Raymond James Trust N.A. Raises Holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Raymond James Trust N.A. increased its position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 99.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 37,972 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 18,970 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A.’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $5,450,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PHM. Blackhawk Capital Partners LLC. acquired a new position in PulteGroup during the third quarter worth approximately $223,000. Brown Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of PulteGroup during the third quarter worth approximately $240,000. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department grew its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 39.8% in the 3rd quarter. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department now owns 39,589 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $5,682,000 after purchasing an additional 11,269 shares during the last quarter. Foundry Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the third quarter valued at approximately $212,000. Finally, Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in PulteGroup in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,074,000. 89.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Thomas J. Folliard sold 19,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.14, for a total transaction of $2,491,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 45,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,931,462.20. This represents a 29.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.83% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on PHM shares. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of PulteGroup from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. BTIG Research upped their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $139.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $168.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America boosted their price target on PulteGroup from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on PulteGroup from $148.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.00.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

NYSE PHM opened at $129.76 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. PulteGroup, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $86.59 and a fifty-two week high of $149.47. The business has a fifty day moving average of $136.74 and a 200-day moving average of $125.77. The stock has a market cap of $26.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.63.

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

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

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

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.