PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) Cut to Sell at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report report published on Saturday morning.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. BTIG Research initiated coverage on PulteGroup in a research report on Monday, December 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Barclays set a $115.00 target price on PulteGroup in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Citigroup boosted their target price on PulteGroup from $132.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on PulteGroup from $154.00 to $134.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $136.00 to $149.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $137.25.

PulteGroup Stock Up 0.6%

PHM stock opened at $119.82 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $23.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $121.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $122.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. PulteGroup has a 12 month low of $88.07 and a 12 month high of $142.11.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 21st. The construction company reported $2.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.10. PulteGroup had a net margin of 14.93% and a return on equity of 19.58%. The company had revenue of $4.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.31 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.35 EPS. PulteGroup’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that PulteGroup will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current year.

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 16th will be given a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 16th. This is a positive change from PulteGroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.01%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PulteGroup

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 12,900,271 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,704,513,000 after purchasing an additional 609,640 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in PulteGroup during the second quarter worth about $404,339,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in PulteGroup by 13.3% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,623,917 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $478,828,000 after buying an additional 424,011 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in PulteGroup by 0.9% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,634,275 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $277,811,000 after buying an additional 23,051 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new stake in shares of PulteGroup during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $315,883,000. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PulteGroup Company Profile

PulteGroup, Inc (NYSE: PHM) is a U.S.-based residential homebuilder that designs, constructs and sells single-family homes and develops master-planned communities. The company operates multiple national and regional brands that target different buyer segments, including first-time buyers, move-up buyers and active-adult customers. Its operations encompass land acquisition and development, home design and construction, community amenities and ongoing customer service and warranty programs.

PulteGroup markets homes under several well-known brands, such as Pulte Homes, Centex and Del Webb, among others, offering a range of product types from entry-level detached homes to larger, higher-end residences and age-restricted active-adult communities.