The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Lowers Holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. $PHM

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lowered its holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 6.7% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 95,055 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 6,829 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $13,042,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PHM. Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in PulteGroup by 18.3% in the 4th quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 484 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Evergreen Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 2.8% in the second quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 2,875 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $304,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of PulteGroup by 1.1% during the second quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 7,372 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,012,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR increased its position in shares of PulteGroup by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 2,350 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $276,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Finally, Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC now owns 7,116 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $834,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on PHM shares. Wolfe Research set a $129.00 target price on PulteGroup and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on PulteGroup from $115.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on PulteGroup from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised PulteGroup from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $141.87.

PulteGroup Price Performance

PulteGroup stock opened at $118.19 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $127.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $124.38. The stock has a market cap of $22.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.19. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 12-month low of $108.49 and a 12-month high of $144.49.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The construction company reported $2.48 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.12. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 15.21% and a net margin of 11.62%.The firm had revenue of $3.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.94 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.03 earnings per share. PulteGroup’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 10.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is presently 10.62%.

PulteGroup Company Profile

PulteGroup, Inc is a U.S. homebuilding company that designs, constructs and sells homes for a range of buyers, including first-time, move-up and active-adult customers. Its residential offerings include single-family homes, townhomes and communities in a variety of price ranges and styles.

The company operates through several well-known brands, including Pulte, Centex, Del Webb, DiVosta and American West Homes. Its communities are located across numerous metropolitan areas and regions in the United States, with operations spanning markets in the South, Southeast, Southwest, Midwest and West.

PulteGroup also provides mortgage lending and related title services to support home purchases through its financial-services operations.