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

PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM) was the target of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Traders bought 9,941 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 1,498% compared to the average volume of 622 call options.

Insider Activity at PulteGroup

In related news, VP Brien P. O’meara sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.09, for a total transaction of $206,180.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 15,389 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,586,452.01. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.83% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PulteGroup

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in PulteGroup during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its position in shares of PulteGroup by 335.6% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 379 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Security National Bank acquired a new position in shares of PulteGroup in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.90% of the company’s stock.

PulteGroup Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PHM opened at $113.86 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $23.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.12, a PEG ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. PulteGroup has a one year low of $65.16 and a one year high of $121.07. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $112.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $100.51.

PulteGroup (NYSE:PHM) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The construction company reported $3.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.21 by $0.07. PulteGroup had a return on equity of 25.81% and a net margin of 16.63%. The business had revenue of $4.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.47 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.63 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that PulteGroup will post 12.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PulteGroup announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 30th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the construction company to reacquire up to 6.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on PHM. Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 price target on shares of PulteGroup in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on PulteGroup from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on PulteGroup from $126.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Citigroup raised their price objective on PulteGroup from $116.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on PulteGroup from $126.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $111.73.

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.