Traders Buy High Volume of PulteGroup Call Options (NYSE:PHM)

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

PulteGroup Stock Performance

NYSE PHM opened at $119.35 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $121.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $121.26. The company has a market capitalization of $23.26 billion, a PE ratio of 9.19, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.31. PulteGroup has a 1 year low of $88.07 and a 1 year high of $142.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The construction company reported $2.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $4.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.31 billion. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 19.58% and a net margin of 14.93%.The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.35 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that PulteGroup will post 12.32 earnings per share for the current year.

PulteGroup Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 16th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 16th. This is an increase from PulteGroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. PulteGroup’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.01%.

Institutional Trading of PulteGroup

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. AIA Group Ltd increased its stake in PulteGroup by 138.3% in the third quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 17,357 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,293,000 after purchasing an additional 10,074 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of PulteGroup by 2.6% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 9,031 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,193,000 after buying an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Goldentree Asset Management LP purchased a new position in shares of PulteGroup during the third quarter worth about $39,972,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its position in PulteGroup by 88.3% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 14,307 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,890,000 after acquiring an additional 6,710 shares during the period. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in PulteGroup by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,061,377 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $140,240,000 after acquiring an additional 67,770 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PHM has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of PulteGroup from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of PulteGroup from $154.00 to $134.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Bank of America cut their price target on PulteGroup from $145.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Zacks Research raised PulteGroup from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 29th. Finally, Barclays set a $115.00 price objective on PulteGroup in a report on Monday, December 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, PulteGroup has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $137.25.

PulteGroup Company Profile

PulteGroup, Inc (NYSE: PHM) is a U.S.-based residential homebuilder that designs, constructs and sells single-family homes and develops master-planned communities. The company operates multiple national and regional brands that target different buyer segments, including first-time buyers, move-up buyers and active-adult customers. Its operations encompass land acquisition and development, home design and construction, community amenities and ongoing customer service and warranty programs.

PulteGroup markets homes under several well-known brands, such as Pulte Homes, Centex and Del Webb, among others, offering a range of product types from entry-level detached homes to larger, higher-end residences and age-restricted active-adult communities.