Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd Invests $80,000 in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 738 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $80,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the 4th quarter worth about $427,562,000. Amundi lifted its stake in PulteGroup by 77.9% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,636,562 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $180,775,000 after purchasing an additional 716,716 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in PulteGroup by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 11,937,866 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,300,034,000 after purchasing an additional 683,592 shares during the last quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC boosted its position in shares of PulteGroup by 3,118.4% during the third quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 376,717 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $54,070,000 after buying an additional 365,012 shares during the period. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 837.9% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 173,727 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $24,935,000 after buying an additional 155,204 shares during the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at PulteGroup

In other PulteGroup news, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total transaction of $266,125.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 56,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,026,879.65. The trade was a 4.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 11,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,209,980.80. This represents a 23.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 21,191 shares of company stock valued at $2,256,367 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

PHM stock opened at $91.79 on Wednesday. PulteGroup, Inc. has a one year low of $90.45 and a one year high of $149.47. The firm has a market cap of $18.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.24, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $104.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $119.03.

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

PulteGroup declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, January 30th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the construction company to reacquire up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.96%. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 5.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on PHM shares. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded PulteGroup from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $146.00 to $119.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $162.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $140.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of PulteGroup from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, PulteGroup currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $139.64.

PulteGroup 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.