Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) Declares Dividend Increase – $0.31 Per Share

Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, February 11th,NASDAQ Dividends reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of 0.31 per share by the construction company on Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. This is a positive change from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29.

Masco has increased its dividend payment by an average of 18.1% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 12 consecutive years. Masco has a payout ratio of 25.8% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Masco to earn $4.83 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.24 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 25.7%.

Masco Stock Performance

NYSE:MAS opened at $77.30 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74. Masco has a 1 year low of $63.81 and a 1 year high of $86.70. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $76.32 and a 200-day moving average of $78.74.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.01. Masco had a return on equity of 838.32% and a net margin of 10.50%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.83 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Masco will post 4.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Loop Capital boosted their target price on shares of Masco from $76.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Oppenheimer upgraded Masco from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $89.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $74.00 target price on shares of Masco in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $96.00 to $89.00 in a report on Monday, December 16th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.32.

About Masco

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.