Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Sells 1,086 Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System trimmed its holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 9.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,888 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 1,086 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $1,186,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 74.1% in 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 period. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 41.9% in the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 444 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares during the period. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 642.2% in the fourth quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 475 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 411 shares during the period. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PulteGroup Stock Down 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE PHM opened at $103.04 on Friday. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 52-week low of $100.35 and a 52-week high of $149.47. The stock has a market cap of $20.86 billion, a PE ratio of 7.00, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. The business has a fifty day moving average of $108.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $122.21.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.98%.

PulteGroup announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, January 30th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the construction company to repurchase up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on PHM shares. Seaport Res Ptn raised PulteGroup from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 13th. UBS Group raised their target price on PulteGroup from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on PulteGroup from $140.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their target price on PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Seven equities research 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.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.86.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total value of $266,125.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 56,617 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,026,879.65. This trade represents a 4.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total value of $1,617,841.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now 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 worth $2,256,367. 0.83% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.