StockNews.com Downgrades Masco (NYSE:MAS) to Hold

StockNews.com lowered shares of Masco (NYSE:MAS) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Wednesday.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on MAS. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Masco from $73.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Loop Capital upped their price objective on Masco from $76.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada lowered Masco from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $79.00 to $80.00 in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group boosted their target price on Masco from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Masco from $95.00 to $94.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Masco currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $84.85.

Masco Stock Up 0.3 %

NYSE:MAS opened at $80.18 on Wednesday. Masco has a 52 week low of $53.44 and a 52 week high of $86.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $81.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $74.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.24.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The construction company reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.08. The firm had revenue of $1.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2 billion. Masco had a return on equity of 615.54% and a net margin of 10.54%. Masco’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.00 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Masco will post 4.1 EPS for the current year.

Masco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 25th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. Masco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Masco

In other news, VP Kenneth G. Cole sold 37,814 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.32, for a total value of $2,961,592.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 36,980 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,896,273.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Masco

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MAS. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Masco by 2.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,300,591 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,074,591,000 after buying an additional 721,117 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in shares of Masco by 1.9% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 9,830,723 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $655,414,000 after acquiring an additional 181,515 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in shares of Masco by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,950,880 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $241,825,000 after acquiring an additional 26,259 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc raised its position in Masco by 10.0% in the 2nd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 2,855,056 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $190,347,000 after purchasing an additional 259,205 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC boosted its stake in Masco by 16.6% during the 1st quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 2,245,644 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $177,136,000 after purchasing an additional 319,029 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.