UPDATE 5-Pulte posts bigger-than-expected quarterly loss

* Net loss 31 cents/share; Street view loss 19 cents/shr

* Revenue up 5 pct at $1.7 bln

* Orders more than double to 3,748 homes

* Shares down 2.1 pct (Updates share movement; adds analyst quote, background)

By Helen Chernikoff

NEW YORK, Feb 9 (Reuters) - Pulte Homes Inc (PHM.N), the largest U.S. builder, reported a bigger-than-expected fourth-quarter loss as it took a writeoff from its acquisition of Centex Corp, sending its shares lower.

The Bloomfield Hills, Michigan-based company, which has operations in 29 states, said results were roughly break-even, excluding one-time charges and benefits.

But many peers, including Lennar Corp (LEN.N) and KB Home (KBH.N), managed to post profits in their most recent quarters due to tax benefits generated after the extension of a federal law that allows them to apply losses to prior income.

Pulte's results included $800 million in such benefits. They did not, however, fully compensate for $925 million in charges, such as a $563 million goodwill writeoff from the August purchase of Centex for $1.3 billion in stock. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Graphic on Pulte results link.reuters.com/cuv58h ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

The goodwill writeoff is "basically an admission of overpayment" for Centex, Morningstar analyst Eric Landry said.

The merits of Pulte's Centex acquisition have been a source of debate since it was announced last April.

The company touts the deal as a source of land, which is becoming increasingly important as lot prices rise and some markets face shortages.

"One of the strategic pillars to the deal was acquiring Centex's 56,000 lots," Chief Executive Richard Dugas said during a conference call with analysts. "I think everyone is getting a better appreciation for the current land environment and the limited availability of well-positioned finished lots."

The downside: Such a big land pipeline is hurting gross margins because Pulte is building more than its peers on older lots purchased at higher prices, Landry said.

Pulte's gross margins came in at 12.4 percent, while the median for its peers is about 17.8 percent, said Macquarie Securities analyst Ken Zener.

The company's net loss narrowed to $116.9 million, or 31 cents per share, from $338.2 million, or $1.33 per share, a year earlier. Analysts on average were expecting a smaller loss of 19 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

But Pulte's revenue rose 5 percent to $1.7 billion, beating analysts' estimates of $1.5 billion, as closings increased 13 percent to 6,200 homes. Orders more than doubled to 3,748 homes, above JPMorgan analyst Michael Rehaut's estimate for a 94 percent increase.

"We believe Pulte's orders and core margins are consistent with our outlook for demand to continue to stabilize if not slowly re-emerge," Rehaut wrote in a note to clients. He has a "neutral" rating on Pulte shares.

The stock was down 2.1 percent at $10.90 in afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange. (Reporting by Helen Chernikoff; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn and John Wallace)