PulteGroup Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:PHM)

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock traders bought 9,941 call options on the company. This is an increase of 1,498% compared to the typical volume of 622 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on PHM. Zelman & Associates raised shares of PulteGroup from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 target price (up previously from $120.00) on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $126.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of PulteGroup from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $113.07.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

Shares of PHM stock opened at $109.75 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $114.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $109.51. PulteGroup has a one year low of $68.80 and a one year high of $122.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.09 billion, a PE ratio of 8.79, a PEG ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $2.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.51. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 25.81% and a net margin of 16.63%. The business had revenue of $3.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.59 billion. As a group, research analysts forecast that PulteGroup will post 12.64 earnings per share for the current year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 18th. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is 6.41%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PulteGroup

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Putnam Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 11,008,695 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,136,318,000 after buying an additional 197,656 shares in the last quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. now owns 5,726,368 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $591,076,000 after purchasing an additional 24,350 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the 4th quarter worth $381,960,000. Morgan Stanley lifted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,115,877 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $230,731,000 after purchasing an additional 61,953 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 54.6% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,003,713 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $310,043,000 after purchasing an additional 1,060,466 shares in the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.