Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) have received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the thirteen ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $86.79.

MAS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Masco from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Masco from $95.00 to $94.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $96.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Monday, December 16th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Masco from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Masco from $92.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th.

Institutional Trading of Masco

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MAS. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in Masco by 956.3% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 989,640 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $83,070,000 after acquiring an additional 895,950 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in Masco by 21.0% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,997,839 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $218,063,000 after purchasing an additional 520,555 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in shares of Masco by 86.5% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 634,740 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $42,318,000 after purchasing an additional 294,409 shares during the period. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of Masco by 49.2% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 883,859 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $74,192,000 after purchasing an additional 291,658 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lifted its stake in shares of Masco by 89.5% in the 2nd quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 579,597 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $38,642,000 after purchasing an additional 273,718 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Masco Price Performance

NYSE MAS opened at $72.42 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $15.62 billion, a PE ratio of 19.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.25. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $77.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $77.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 1.83. Masco has a 52-week low of $63.81 and a 52-week high of $86.70.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The construction company reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.08. The business had revenue of $1.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2 billion. Masco had a return on equity of 615.54% and a net margin of 10.54%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.00 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Masco will post 4.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Masco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 25th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. Masco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.85%.

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.