PulteGroup Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:PHM)

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) saw some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders purchased 9,941 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 1,498% compared to the typical volume of 622 call options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on PHM shares. Barclays set a $115.00 price objective on PulteGroup in a research report on Monday, December 8th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $160.00 to $159.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Citizens Jmp started coverage on shares of PulteGroup in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. They set a “market outperform” rating and a $145.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $111.00 price objective on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $135.00 to $128.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.85.

Institutional Trading of PulteGroup

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in PulteGroup in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Rexford Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the second quarter worth $35,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 281.7% during the third quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 271 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Beacon Financial Strategies CORP purchased a new position in PulteGroup during the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC increased its stake in PulteGroup by 33.3% in the 2nd quarter. Hager Investment Management Services LLC now owns 420 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

PulteGroup Trading Down 1.8%

NYSE:PHM opened at $127.69 on Friday. PulteGroup has a 1 year low of $88.07 and a 1 year high of $142.11. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $123.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $124.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a market cap of $24.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.33.

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

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 16th were issued a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 16th. This is a positive change from PulteGroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is currently 8.01%.

About PulteGroup

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.