Watershed Asset Management L.L.C. Has $315,000 Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Watershed Asset Management L.L.C. decreased its holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 14.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,054 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 529 shares during the period. PulteGroup makes up 0.4% of Watershed Asset Management L.L.C.’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Watershed Asset Management L.L.C.’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $315,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd raised its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 12.3% in the 4th quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 5,612 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $579,000 after buying an additional 615 shares in the last quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC grew its position in PulteGroup by 23.4% in the fourth quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 45,738 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $4,721,000 after acquiring an additional 8,686 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in PulteGroup during the fourth quarter worth $113,000. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas bought a new position in shares of PulteGroup during the fourth quarter valued at $386,000. Finally, National Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the 4th quarter valued at $715,000. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PulteGroup Trading Up 4.6 %

Shares of PHM traded up $4.93 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $112.76. 3,513,960 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,825,203. The business has a fifty day moving average of $110.73 and a 200-day moving average of $98.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.79 billion, a PE ratio of 9.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.56. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 1-year low of $62.35 and a 1-year high of $121.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.21 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $4.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.47 billion. PulteGroup had a net margin of 16.20% and a return on equity of 25.97%. The company’s revenue was down 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.63 EPS. Analysts expect that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 11.79 EPS for the current year.

PulteGroup declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 30th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the construction company to buy up to 6.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.71%. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is presently 6.81%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.09, for a total value of $206,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 15,389 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,586,452.01. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PHM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $91.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Raymond James increased their price target on PulteGroup from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on PulteGroup from $116.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $106.47.

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.