AlphaQuest LLC Has $1.72 Million Holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

AlphaQuest LLC trimmed its holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 20.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 23,720 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 5,943 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Masco were worth $1,721,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MAS. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in Masco by 6.7% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,031 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $170,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Masco by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 263,155 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $22,089,000 after buying an additional 7,089 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Masco in the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. Equitable Trust Co. grew its stake in Masco by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 7,953 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $668,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC bought a new position in Masco in the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,109,000. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MAS. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Masco from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Masco from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $74.00 target price on shares of Masco in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $96.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.32.

Masco Stock Performance

Shares of Masco stock opened at $75.25 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $76.15 and a 200-day moving average of $78.76. The company has a market cap of $15.95 billion, a PE ratio of 20.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. 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 Co. has a 1-year low of $63.81 and a 1-year high of $86.70.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.83 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Masco Co. will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. This is a boost from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Masco’s payout ratio is currently 32.98%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of Masco stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.36, for a total transaction of $1,658,768.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 60,267 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,601,988.12. The trade was a 26.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

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.