Franklin Resources Inc. Acquires 683,592 Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 6.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,937,866 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 683,592 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.06% of PulteGroup worth $1,300,034,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new position in PulteGroup in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in shares of PulteGroup by 74.1% in the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 322 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in PulteGroup during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its position in shares of PulteGroup by 41.9% during the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 444 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 642.2% during the 4th quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 475 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 411 shares during the last quarter. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other PulteGroup news, EVP Todd N. Sheldon sold 15,191 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were 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 owns 74,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,961,727. This trade represents a 16.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 21,191 shares of company stock worth $2,256,367. Company insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America dropped their price target on PulteGroup from $135.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Seaport Res Ptn raised PulteGroup from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Citigroup dropped their price target on PulteGroup from $146.00 to $119.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $140.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, 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 research report on Friday, January 31st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PulteGroup has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.86.

PulteGroup Price Performance

PulteGroup stock opened at $101.76 on Monday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $107.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $121.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.92, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.71. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 52-week low of $100.35 and a 52-week high of $149.47.

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 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 anticipate that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, January 30th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the construction company to buy up to 6.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is presently 5.98%.

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.