SpiderRock Advisors LLC Buys Shares of 3,632 Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

SpiderRock Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 3,632 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $268,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Glenmede Trust Co. NA raised its position in shares of Masco by 73.5% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 9,876 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $528,000 after purchasing an additional 4,185 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Masco during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $246,000. Scopus Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in Masco by 192.2% in the third quarter. Scopus Asset Management L.P. now owns 233,789 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $12,496,000 after buying an additional 153,789 shares in the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its holdings in shares of Masco by 16.7% in the third quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 1,520,129 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $81,251,000 after buying an additional 218,017 shares during the period. Finally, Royal London Asset Management Ltd. increased its position in shares of Masco by 5.6% during the third quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 86,280 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,612,000 after acquiring an additional 4,594 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on MAS. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Masco from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Loop Capital cut their price target on Masco from $79.00 to $76.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Masco from $75.00 to $74.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Masco from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.15.

Masco Stock Performance

Shares of MAS stock traded down $0.63 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $64.15. 659,443 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,917,118. Masco Co. has a 52 week low of $47.66 and a 52 week high of $78.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.73, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.24. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $68.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $70.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 18.76, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.74.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.94 billion. Masco had a return on equity of 865.37% and a net margin of 11.60%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.87 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Masco Co. will post 4.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Masco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 24th were paid a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.81%. Masco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.43%.

Masco 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.