LEN Lennar Corp

The founder and largest shareholder of home-building giant PulteGroup Inc. escalated his push against its chief executive Wednesday, vowing in a letter to shareholders that he would vote against the entire board at the company's upcoming annual meeting unless the CEO and lead director resign immediately.

The letter continues a saga that has pitted William J. "Bill" Pulte against his onetime proté gé , chief executive Richard Dugas, in a battle over the company's future.

"Shareholders can no longer entrust the future of PulteGroup to the failed status quo," wrote Mr. Pulte, 83 years old. "We cannot wait for another year to go by before an effective, proven leader is in place."

Mr. Dugas, who is also the company's chairman, and PulteGroup representatives weren't immediately available for comment.

The controversy came to light two weeks ago when PulteGroup announced that Mr. Dugas would retire next year, at the urging of Mr. Pulte, board member James Grosfeld and Mr. Pulte's grandson, also named William J. "Bill" Pulte.

The company said it announced the early retirement "in an effort to avoid a contested public battle." But Mr. Pulte fired back, arguing that waiting another year would only further delay changes "to the detriment of shareholders."

Mr. Pulte has sent two letters to the company's board since then, demanding the immediate replacement of Mr. Dugas. Mr. Pulte has argued that the company has lost ground to competitors throughout the economic recovery and has failed to capitalize on the housing market's rebound.

Mr. Pulte's letter to shareholders Wednesday also took aim at the company's board members, whom he said "lack the experience, expertise and capability to provide strategic guidance to management on how to address the company's chronic underperformance."

Mr. Pulte wrote that if Mr. Dugas and lead director James Postl weren't immediately replaced by shareholder representatives, he would vote against the entire board at the coming shareholders' meeting in May. Mr. Pulte owns 8.9% of the company's stock.

Mr. Postl also didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Mr. Pulte noted that the company's profits and stock price have lagged behind competitors such as D.R. Horton Inc. and Lennar Corp. in recent years. He has also said Mr. Dugas presided over an exodus of home-building talent among executive ranks, writing that he has an "inability or unwillingness to work constructively with colleagues and effectively lead the organization."

The company, meanwhile, has defended its strategy over the past five years, saying it had boosted profits each year, significantly reduced debt and returned $559 million to shareholders in dividends and stock repurchases last year.

PulteGroup is set to report first quarter earnings Thursday morning. Shares of the company rose 2.8%, to $19.18, on Wednesday.

Write to Chris Kirkham at chris.kirkham@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 20, 2016 21:15 ET (01:15 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.