Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the sixteen analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $81.57.

Several brokerages recently commented on MAS. Zelman & Associates raised Masco to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Oppenheimer upgraded Masco from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $89.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Masco from $82.00 to $65.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Masco from $64.00 to $62.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Masco from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th.

Masco Price Performance

MAS opened at $59.34 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $68.89 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $75.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. Masco has a 52-week low of $56.55 and a 52-week high of $86.70.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $0.87 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by ($0.05). Masco had a net margin of 10.50% and a return on equity of 838.32%. The company had revenue of $1.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.84 billion. As a group, analysts predict that Masco will post 4.34 EPS for the current year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This is a positive change from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.09%. Masco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Masco

In other Masco news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.36, for a total transaction of $1,658,768.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 60,267 shares in the company, valued at $4,601,988.12. This trade represents a 26.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.78, for a total value of $225,317.42. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 33,027 shares in the company, valued at $2,370,678.06. This trade represents a 8.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Masco

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Masco by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,129,771 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $371,265,000 after acquiring an additional 58,739 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Masco by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,900,643 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $283,070,000 after purchasing an additional 337,164 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Masco by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,250,400 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $235,881,000 after purchasing an additional 299,520 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of Masco by 21.0% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,997,839 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $218,063,000 after purchasing an additional 520,555 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Masco by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,821,629 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $204,766,000 after buying an additional 360,931 shares during the period. 93.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Masco Company Profile

Masco Corporation designs, manufactures, and distributes home improvement and building products in North America, Europe, and internationally. The company's Plumbing Products segment offers faucets, showerheads, handheld showers, valves, bath hardware and accessories, bathing units, shower bases and enclosures, sinks, toilets, acrylic tubs, shower trays, spas, exercise pools, and fitness systems; brass, copper, and composite plumbing system components; connected water products; thermoplastic solutions, extruded plastic profiles, specialized fabrications, and PEX tubing products; and other non-decorative plumbing products.