PulteGroup Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:PHM)

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on PHM shares. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Wolfe Research cut PulteGroup from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. BTIG Research lifted their target price on PulteGroup from $139.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group upped their price target on PulteGroup from $148.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $168.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, PulteGroup presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.00.

PulteGroup Stock Up 0.7 %

PulteGroup stock opened at $136.53 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The company’s 50-day moving average is $136.51 and its 200-day moving average is $126.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.00 billion, a PE ratio of 10.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.63. PulteGroup has a fifty-two week low of $86.59 and a fifty-two week high of $149.47.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The construction company reported $3.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.10 by $0.25. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 25.30% and a net margin of 16.64%. The firm had revenue of $4.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.90 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that PulteGroup will post 12.94 earnings per share for the current year.

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 17th. This is a boost from PulteGroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is 6.49%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PulteGroup

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 5.5% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 11,254,274 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,647,364,000 after purchasing an additional 585,735 shares during the period. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp raised its holdings in PulteGroup by 50.9% in the 3rd quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 5,336 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $766,000 after acquiring an additional 1,800 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in PulteGroup by 837.9% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 173,727 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $24,935,000 after acquiring an additional 155,204 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in PulteGroup during the third quarter worth approximately $732,000. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 21.8% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,515 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,366,000 after acquiring an additional 1,706 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

About PulteGroup

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.