PulteGroup (PHM) reported $4.92 billion in revenue for the quarter ended December 2024, representing a year-over-year increase of 14.6%. EPS of $3.50 for the same period compares to $3.28 a year ago.

The reported revenue represents a surprise of +5.57% over the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4.66 billion. With the consensus EPS estimate being $3.24, the EPS surprise was +8.02%.

While investors closely watch year-over-year changes in headline numbers -- revenue and earnings -- and how they compare to Wall Street expectations to determine their next course of action, some key metrics always provide a better insight into a company's underlying performance.

Since these metrics play a crucial role in driving the top- and bottom-line numbers, comparing them with the year-ago numbers and what analysts estimated about them helps investors better project a stock's price performance.

Here is how PulteGroup performed in the just reported quarter in terms of the metrics most widely monitored and projected by Wall Street analysts:

• Closings (units) - Total: 8,103 versus 8,099 estimated by five analysts on average.
• Active Communities: 960 compared to the 950 average estimate based on five analysts.
• Unit Backlog - Total: 10,153 versus the five-analyst average estimate of 10,264.
• Average Selling Price - Total: $581 versus the five-analyst average estimate of $559.52.
• Net New Orders in Units - Total: 6,167 compared to the 6,274 average estimate based on five analysts.
• Backlog Value - Total: $6.49 billion versus $6.64 billion estimated by two analysts on average.
• Net New Orders (Value) - Total: $3.51 billion compared to the $3.60 billion average estimate based on two analysts.
• Homebuilding- Home sale revenues: $4.71 billion compared to the $4.53 billion average estimate based on six analysts. The reported number represents a change of +13% year over year.
• Revenues- Financial Services: $115.15 million compared to the $100.25 million average estimate based on six analysts. The reported number represents a change of +22.7% year over year.
• Revenues- Homebuilding: $4.81 billion versus the six-analyst average estimate of $4.56 billion. The reported number represents a year-over-year change of +14.5%.
• Homebuilding- Land sale revenues: $99.11 million versus $32.02 million estimated by five analysts on average. Compared to the year-ago quarter, this number represents a +186.9% change.

View all Key Company Metrics for PulteGroup here>>>

Shares of PulteGroup have returned +3.8% over the past month versus the Zacks S&P 500 composite's +1.2% change. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), indicating that it could perform in line with the broader market in the near term.

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