Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. Decreases Position in Masco Corporation $MAS

Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Masco Corporation (NYSE:MAS) by 50.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 25,000 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 25,000 shares during the quarter. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Masco were worth $1,586,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Masco by 7.6% in the fourth quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,920 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $249,000 after acquiring an additional 277 shares during the period. Advisor OS LLC boosted its position in Masco by 16.4% in the 4th quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 6,375 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $405,000 after buying an additional 900 shares during the period. NewEdge Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Masco by 69.2% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 10,814 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $686,000 after acquiring an additional 4,423 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Masco by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 11,648 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $739,000 after purchasing an additional 359 shares during the period. Finally, Wesbanco Bank Inc. raised its position in Masco by 14.9% during the 4th quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 16,995 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,079,000 after purchasing an additional 2,199 shares in the last quarter. 93.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Heath M. Eisman sold 747 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.92, for a total value of $53,724.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 12,510 shares in the company, valued at $899,719.20. This trade represents a 5.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Masco from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Masco from $72.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $88.00 price objective on shares of Masco in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Masco from $70.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $80.07.

Masco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MAS opened at $69.84 on Wednesday. Masco Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $58.16 and a fifty-two week high of $79.19. The company has a market cap of $14.09 billion, a PE ratio of 17.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 109.07, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.75. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $65.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.23.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The construction company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $1.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.07 billion. Masco had a net margin of 10.90% and a return on equity of 815.20%. Masco’s revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.87 EPS. Masco has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.100-4.300 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Masco Corporation will post 4.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Masco declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 10th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the construction company to repurchase up to 13.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Masco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 22nd. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Masco’s payout ratio is 31.76%.

Masco Profile

Masco Corporation is a global leader in the design, manufacture and distribution of branded home improvement and building products. Founded in 1929 and headquartered in Livonia, Michigan, the company has evolved from a small door‐bell manufacturer into a diversified enterprise serving both residential and commercial markets. Over its history, Masco has grown through a combination of organic innovation and strategic acquisitions, building a portfolio of well-recognized brands.

The company’s product offerings are organized into two primary segments.