Federated Hermes Inc. Reduces Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Federated Hermes Inc. reduced its holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 62.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 31,462 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 52,430 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $3,426,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its stake in PulteGroup by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 622 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in PulteGroup by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,572 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $280,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in PulteGroup by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,224 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,440,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in PulteGroup by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,384 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $479,000 after buying an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital increased its stake in shares of PulteGroup by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 3,050 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $328,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at PulteGroup

In other news, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.50, for a total transaction of $1,617,841.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,961,727. This represents a 16.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total value of $266,125.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 56,617 shares in the company, valued at $6,026,879.65. This trade represents a 4.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 21,191 shares of company stock valued at $2,256,367. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

PulteGroup Price Performance

Shares of PHM opened at $94.38 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. PulteGroup, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $88.07 and a fifty-two week high of $149.47. The company has a market cap of $19.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.42, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.44. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $103.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $117.89.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 24.43% and a net margin of 17.18%. On average, research analysts forecast that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, January 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to buy up to 6.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is presently 5.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of PulteGroup in a report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $148.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America decreased their price objective on PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. Oppenheimer cut their target price on PulteGroup from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on PulteGroup from $117.00 to $100.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $139.64.

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.