M&T Bank Corp Lowers Holdings in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

M&T Bank Corp lowered its holdings in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 5.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 31,213 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 1,933 shares during the quarter. M&T Bank Corp’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $3,222,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Greenhaven Associates Inc. grew its holdings in PulteGroup by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. now owns 5,726,368 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $591,076,000 after buying an additional 24,350 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in PulteGroup by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,484,469 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $406,125,000 after acquiring an additional 95,945 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in PulteGroup by 13.3% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,432,965 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $328,261,000 after purchasing an additional 522,032 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,115,877 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $230,731,000 after purchasing an additional 61,953 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of PulteGroup by 54.6% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,003,713 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $310,043,000 after purchasing an additional 1,060,466 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

PulteGroup Stock Down 0.6 %

PulteGroup stock opened at $116.95 on Wednesday. PulteGroup, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $65.16 and a fifty-two week high of $121.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $24.60 billion, a PE ratio of 9.36, a PEG ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.56. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $112.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $101.88.

PulteGroup declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 30th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the construction company to reacquire up to 6.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 18th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.68%. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.41%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PHM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of PulteGroup from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on PulteGroup from $91.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Citigroup upped their target price on PulteGroup from $116.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $111.73.

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.