Paralel Advisors LLC Buys 2,888 Shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Paralel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 10.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 31,818 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 2,888 shares during the quarter. Paralel Advisors LLC’s holdings in Masco were worth $2,309,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Masco in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Masco in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Masco in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Masco in the fourth quarter worth $42,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in shares of Masco by 26.7% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 703 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Masco from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $89.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Masco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Masco from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Masco from $87.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Ten 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. According to MarketBeat.com, Masco presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $84.50.

Masco Stock Performance

MAS traded down $2.34 during trading on Thursday, hitting $61.44. The stock had a trading volume of 48,712 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,694,253. 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 one year low of $57.27 and a one year high of $86.70. The firm has a market cap of $13.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $72.17 and a 200-day moving average price of $76.78.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 last year, the company earned $0.83 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Masco Co. will post 4.34 EPS for the current year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This is a positive change from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Masco’s payout ratio is 32.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of Masco stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.78, for a total value of $225,317.42. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 33,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,370,678.06. The trade was a 8.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction of $1,658,768.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.