Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Makes New $66.49 Million Investment in PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM)

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP acquired a new stake in shares of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 463,215 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $66,485,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP owned about 0.23% of PulteGroup at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. WR Wealth Planners LLC raised its stake in PulteGroup by 54.7% during the second quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 232 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 115.1% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 185 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new position in PulteGroup in the third quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new stake in PulteGroup during the second quarter valued at about $31,000. 89.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on PHM. Wolfe Research lowered PulteGroup from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of PulteGroup from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $198.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on PulteGroup from $168.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on PulteGroup from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $145.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Thomas J. Folliard sold 19,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.14, for a total value of $2,491,660.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 45,230 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,931,462.20. This trade represents a 29.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.83% of the company’s stock.

PulteGroup Trading Up 1.3 %

PHM opened at $129.76 on Friday. PulteGroup, Inc. has a 12-month low of $86.59 and a 12-month high of $149.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.61 billion, a PE ratio of 9.57, a P/E/G ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.63. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $136.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $125.83.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The construction company reported $3.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.10 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $4.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.27 billion. PulteGroup had a net margin of 16.64% and a return on equity of 25.30%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.90 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that PulteGroup, Inc. will post 12.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be given a $0.22 dividend. This is a positive change from PulteGroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 17th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.68%. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.90%.

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.