Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ Sells 42,500 Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ cut its stake in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 31.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 92,850 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 42,500 shares during the quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $10,108,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Sigma Planning Corp bought a new position in PulteGroup during the third quarter worth about $259,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its position in PulteGroup by 3.0% during the third quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,054 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $438,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. Cable Hill Partners LLC bought a new position in PulteGroup during the third quarter worth about $207,000. Huntington National Bank increased its position in PulteGroup by 1.3% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 10,155 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,458,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the period. Finally, Metis Global Partners LLC increased its position in PulteGroup by 23.1% during the third quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 12,280 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,763,000 after acquiring an additional 2,302 shares during the period. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PulteGroup Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of PulteGroup stock opened at $103.04 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.86 billion, a PE ratio of 7.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $109.01 and its 200 day moving average is $123.19. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 1 year low of $100.54 and a 1 year high of $149.47.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.28 by $0.22. PulteGroup had a net margin of 17.18% and a return on equity of 24.43%. Equities research analysts forecast that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, January 30th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the construction company to purchase up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total transaction of $1,617,841.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,758 shares in the company, valued at $7,961,727. This trade represents a 16.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 3,500 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.40, for a total transaction of $372,400.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 11,372 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,209,980.80. This represents a 23.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 21,191 shares of company stock worth $2,256,367 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PHM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $140.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $125.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.86.

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.