BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S Decreases Stock Holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S decreased its position in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 11.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 128,500 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 16,056 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S’s holdings in Masco were worth $9,325,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MAS. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Masco during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Masco in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Masco during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Masco during the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Masco by 89.0% during the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 684 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Masco from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $74.00 price target on shares of Masco in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Masco from $82.00 to $65.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Zelman & Associates upgraded Masco to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Masco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.37.

Insider Activity at Masco

In related news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.36, for a total value of $1,658,768.28. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 60,267 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,601,988.12. This represents a 26.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.78, for a total value of $225,317.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 33,027 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,370,678.06. This trade represents a 8.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Masco Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of MAS opened at $61.56 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74. The company has a market capitalization of $13.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.37, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $69.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $75.73. Masco Co. has a 52 week low of $57.27 and a 52 week high of $86.70.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 in the previous year, the firm earned $0.83 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Masco Co. will post 4.34 EPS for the current year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. This is a boost from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Masco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.98%.

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.