PulteGroup Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:PHM)

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Monday. Stock traders bought 7,148 put options on the company. This represents an increase of 967% compared to the typical daily volume of 670 put options.

Shares of PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) opened at 24.35 on Friday. PulteGroup has a 12 month low of $17.69 and a 12 month high of $25.20. The company has a 50-day moving average of $24.30 and a 200-day moving average of $22.86. The firm has a market cap of $7.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.48 and a beta of 1.15.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 25th. The construction company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.02. PulteGroup had a net margin of 7.35% and a return on equity of 13.43%. The firm had revenue of $2.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.03 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.37 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that PulteGroup will post $2.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 8th were paid a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 6th. PulteGroup’s payout ratio is currently 20.00%.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PHM. Barclays PLC lowered PulteGroup from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $24.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, July 11th. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Mizuho lowered PulteGroup from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $22.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday, July 10th. Wedbush reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $15.00 target price on shares of PulteGroup in a report on Tuesday, April 25th. BidaskClub lowered PulteGroup from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 13th. Finally, Zacks Investment Research raised PulteGroup from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $27.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. The company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $25.08.

In other news, Director Brian P. Anderson sold 14,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.18, for a total transaction of $324,520.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 108,744 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,520,685.92. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Trust Department MB Financial Bank N A bought a new position in shares of PulteGroup during the first quarter worth $129,000. IFP Advisors Inc raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 12.0% in the first quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 5,959 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $140,000 after buying an additional 638 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 12.4% in the first quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 6,380 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $150,000 after buying an additional 702 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. bought a new position in shares of PulteGroup during the first quarter worth $155,000. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its position in shares of PulteGroup by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 10,162 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $187,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. 87.85% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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About PulteGroup

PulteGroup, Inc is a homebuilder in the United States. The Company’s segments include Homebuilding and Financial Services. Its Homebuilding operations are engaged in the acquisition and development of land primarily for residential purposes within the United States and the construction of housing on such land.