Moran Wealth Management LLC Cuts Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Moran Wealth Management LLC decreased its holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 255,086 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 6,227 shares during the quarter. PulteGroup comprises approximately 1.1% of Moran Wealth Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Moran Wealth Management LLC owned about 0.12% of PulteGroup worth $36,612,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. WR Wealth Planners LLC increased its position in shares of PulteGroup by 54.7% in the second quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 232 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its position in PulteGroup by 115.1% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 185 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in PulteGroup during the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in PulteGroup in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new stake in PulteGroup in the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on PHM. UBS Group raised their price target on PulteGroup from $148.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on PulteGroup from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on PulteGroup from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on PulteGroup from $198.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on PulteGroup from $131.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, PulteGroup has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $145.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Robert Oshaughnessy sold 71,007 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.83, for a total transaction of $9,573,873.81. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 89,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,043,420.09. The trade was a 44.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Thomas J. Folliard sold 19,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.14, for a total value of $2,491,660.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 45,230 shares in the company, valued at $5,931,462.20. This trade represents a 29.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

NYSE:PHM traded down $0.62 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $127.89. 119,508 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,826,488. PulteGroup, Inc. has a twelve month low of $86.59 and a twelve month high of $149.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $137.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $125.65.

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

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 17th. This is a positive change from PulteGroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is 5.90%.

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.