Edgestream Partners L.P. Purchases New Position in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Edgestream Partners L.P. acquired a new stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 14,890 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,081,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Masco during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Masco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Masco during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Masco in the 3rd quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Masco by 59.4% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 596 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Masco Trading Down 3.4 %

Shares of NYSE MAS opened at $71.37 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $15.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.15. Masco Co. 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 $76.15 and a 200 day moving average of $78.67.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 EPS 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 period in the prior year, the business earned $0.83 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Masco Co. will post 4.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This is a positive change from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. Masco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.98%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.36, for a total value of $1,658,768.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 60,267 shares in the company, valued at $4,601,988.12. The trade was a 26.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on MAS shares. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $96.00 to $89.00 in a report on Monday, December 16th. 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 research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Masco from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on Masco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.