Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund Sells 180 Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lessened its holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 17,611 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 180 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $1,918,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of PHM. Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new position in PulteGroup during the third quarter valued at $29,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new position in PulteGroup during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its position in PulteGroup by 74.1% during the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 322 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in PulteGroup during the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, JNBA Financial Advisors bought a new position in PulteGroup during the third quarter valued at $43,000. Institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at PulteGroup

In other PulteGroup news, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total transaction of $266,125.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 56,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,026,879.65. This represents a 4.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total transaction of $1,617,841.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,961,727. The trade was a 16.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 21,191 shares of company stock valued at $2,256,367. 0.83% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

PulteGroup Stock Up 0.3 %

NYSE:PHM opened at $103.23 on Friday. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 1-year low of $100.54 and a 1-year high of $149.47. The company has a 50-day moving average of $109.97 and a 200 day moving average of $124.71. The firm has a market cap of $20.90 billion, a PE ratio of 7.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.68. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.22. PulteGroup had a net margin of 17.18% and a return on equity of 24.43%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, January 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to reacquire up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is 5.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on PHM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of PulteGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $140.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.86.

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.