PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) Shares Sold by Los Angeles Capital Management LLC

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 12.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,426,619 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 202,968 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $147,256,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 54.6% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,003,713 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $310,043,000 after acquiring an additional 1,060,466 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 63.6% in the third quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,748,119 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $129,354,000 after acquiring an additional 679,582 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the third quarter worth about $47,762,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 13.3% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,432,965 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $328,261,000 after acquiring an additional 522,032 shares during the period. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the third quarter worth about $27,738,000. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PulteGroup Stock Up 1.6 %

NYSE:PHM traded up $1.75 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $113.57. 491,964 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,796,768. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $111.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $100.41. PulteGroup, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $65.16 and a fifty-two week high of $121.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The company has a market capitalization of $23.89 billion, a PE ratio of 8.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.56.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.21 by $0.07. PulteGroup had a net margin of 16.63% and a return on equity of 25.81%. The company had revenue of $4.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.47 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.63 EPS. PulteGroup’s revenue for the quarter was down 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, January 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the construction company to reacquire up to 6.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 2,000 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.09, for a total value of $206,180.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 15,389 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,586,452.01. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on PHM. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $91.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $126.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Zelman & Associates raised shares of PulteGroup from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 price target (up previously from $120.00) on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $116.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $111.73.

PulteGroup 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.