Lord Abbett & CO. LLC Cuts Stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Lord Abbett & CO. LLC lessened its stake in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 15.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 746,814 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 135,710 shares during the period. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC owned 0.35% of Masco worth $54,196,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MAS has been the topic of several research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Masco in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a “hold” rating and a $71.00 price target on the stock. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Masco from $92.00 to $75.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Masco from $82.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Oppenheimer raised Masco from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $89.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Loop Capital set a $62.00 target price on Masco and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Ten research 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. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $73.10.

Insider Buying and Selling at Masco

In other news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the firm’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 owns 60,267 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,601,988.12. This trade represents a 26.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of Masco stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.78, for a total transaction of $225,317.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 33,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,370,678.06. This trade represents a 8.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Masco Price Performance

Shares of MAS opened at $60.41 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $68.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $75.00. The stock has a market cap of $12.79 billion, a PE ratio of 16.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. Masco Co. has a 1-year low of $56.55 and a 1-year high of $86.70. 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 (NYSE:MAS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $0.87 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.05). Masco had a net margin of 10.50% and a return on equity of 838.32%. The company had revenue of $1.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. As a group, analysts forecast 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. Investors 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.05%. 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.