Traders Purchase Large Volume of Call Options on PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM)

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) saw unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Traders acquired 9,941 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 1,498% compared to the average daily volume of 622 call options.

PulteGroup Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE PHM opened at $101.81 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. PulteGroup has a 12 month low of $88.07 and a 12 month high of $149.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.41 billion, a PE ratio of 6.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.44. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $101.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $113.94.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The construction company reported $2.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.47 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $3.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.86 billion. PulteGroup had a net margin of 17.18% and a return on equity of 24.43%. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.10 EPS. Equities analysts expect that PulteGroup will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 17th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.86%. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is 6.21%.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on PHM shares. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on PulteGroup from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $146.00 to $119.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $151.00 to $141.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $134.69.

Insider Transactions at PulteGroup

In other news, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 2,500 shares of PulteGroup stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.45, for a total transaction of $266,125.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 56,617 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,026,879.65. This trade represents a 4.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.40, for a total value of $372,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 11,372 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,209,980.80. The trade was a 23.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 21,191 shares of company stock worth $2,256,367. 0.76% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PHM. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in PulteGroup by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 11,937,866 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,300,034,000 after purchasing an additional 683,592 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,120,878 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $556,465,000 after buying an additional 64,947 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the fourth quarter worth approximately $427,562,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 14.9% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,425,941 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $264,185,000 after buying an additional 315,148 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,033,776 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $221,478,000 after buying an additional 169,736 shares during the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.