PulteGroup Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:PHM)

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors purchased 9,941 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 1,498% compared to the typical daily volume of 622 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PHM has been the subject of several research reports. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $140.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of PulteGroup from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on PulteGroup from $151.00 to $141.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on PulteGroup from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, PulteGroup presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $134.69.

PulteGroup Stock Up 0.7%

NYSE:PHM opened at $104.11 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 has a 12-month low of $88.07 and a 12-month high of $149.47. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $99.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $107.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.08, a P/E/G ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.29.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The construction company reported $2.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $3.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 business earned $3.10 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that PulteGroup will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current year.

PulteGroup Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 17th. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is 6.21%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. WPG Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in PulteGroup in the first quarter worth $25,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of PulteGroup in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. raised its stake in PulteGroup by 43.0% during the 4th quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 349 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the period. American National Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in PulteGroup during the 1st quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in PulteGroup during the fourth quarter worth about $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

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.