Merit Financial Group LLC Grows Stock Position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Merit Financial Group LLC grew its position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 20.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 15,388 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,613 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $1,582,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Argyle Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Argyle Capital Management LLC now owns 42,241 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $4,600,000 after purchasing an additional 641 shares during the period. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the fourth quarter valued at about $275,000. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 11.2% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 390,579 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $42,534,000 after purchasing an additional 39,321 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 8.5% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,112,782 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $121,182,000 after purchasing an additional 87,506 shares during the period. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 20,508 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,233,000 after purchasing an additional 645 shares during the period. 89.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PulteGroup Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:PHM opened at $100.23 on Friday. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 1 year low of $88.07 and a 1 year high of $149.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $99.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $108.10.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The construction company reported $2.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $3.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.86 billion. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 24.43% and a net margin of 17.18%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.10 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 17th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.88%. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is currently 6.21%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PHM has been the topic of a number of research reports. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on PulteGroup from $116.00 to $109.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Seaport Res Ptn raised PulteGroup from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on PulteGroup from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of PulteGroup in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on PulteGroup from $140.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $134.69.

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.