Montag A & Associates Inc. Acquires 2,327 Shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Montag A & Associates Inc. raised its position in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) by 6.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 35,903 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 2,327 shares during the period. Montag A & Associates Inc.’s holdings in PulteGroup were worth $3,712,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC raised its stake in PulteGroup by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC now owns 74,040 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $7,642,000 after buying an additional 8,547 shares during the period. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC increased its position in shares of PulteGroup by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC now owns 3,532 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $365,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares during the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management grew its holdings in PulteGroup by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 49,214 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $5,080,000 after purchasing an additional 7,073 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in PulteGroup by 15.6% during the fourth quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,152 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,358,000 after purchasing an additional 1,779 shares during the period. Finally, Machina Capital S.A.S. bought a new position in PulteGroup during the fourth quarter worth about $622,000. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on PHM shares. Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of PulteGroup from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. StockNews.com upgraded PulteGroup from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on PulteGroup from $91.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 price objective on shares of PulteGroup in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on PulteGroup from $126.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $111.73.

PulteGroup Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PHM traded up $1.27 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $117.06. The stock had a trading volume of 1,277,525 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,799,080. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $113.07 and a 200-day moving average of $102.08. 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 capitalization of $24.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.56. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 12-month low of $65.16 and a 12-month high of $121.07.

PulteGroup Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 18th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.68%. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is currently 6.41%.

PulteGroup announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 30th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the construction company to buy up to 6.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.