PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) Shares Acquired by Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund increased its holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 98.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 12,209 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,065 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $1,330,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its stake 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 buying an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in PulteGroup during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new stake in PulteGroup during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in PulteGroup during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, JNBA Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in PulteGroup during the third quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

Shares of PHM stock opened at $105.63 on Wednesday. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 12-month low of $100.24 and a 12-month high of $149.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.68. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $112.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $125.93. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.22. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 24.43% and a net margin of 17.18%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 EPS for the current year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

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

PulteGroup declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, January 30th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the construction company to purchase up to 6.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on PHM. Bank of America cut their price objective on PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on PulteGroup from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price objective on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on PulteGroup from $198.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other PulteGroup news, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total transaction of $1,617,841.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,961,727. This trade represents a 16.89 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total value of $266,125.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 56,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,026,879.65. The trade was a 4.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,191 shares of company stock valued at $2,256,367 in the last three months. 0.75% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.