National Pension Service Lowers Holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

National Pension Service decreased its holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 9.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 402,577 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 42,882 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service’s holdings in Masco were worth $29,215,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Masco by 20.6% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 331,883 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $28,147,000 after purchasing an additional 56,626 shares during the period. Seizert Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Masco by 21.7% in the third quarter. Seizert Capital Partners LLC now owns 540,437 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $45,364,000 after purchasing an additional 96,415 shares during the period. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Masco by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 219,120 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $17,135,000 after acquiring an additional 13,568 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in Masco by 69.1% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,544 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $112,000 after acquiring an additional 631 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empower Advisory Group LLC lifted its stake in Masco by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,016,079 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $73,737,000 after acquiring an additional 20,129 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MAS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Masco from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Masco from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $89.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Masco currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.32.

Masco Stock Performance

Shares of Masco stock opened at $75.10 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $76.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $78.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.97, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.25. Masco Co. has a 12 month low of $63.81 and a 12 month 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 announced its earnings results 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 net margin of 10.50% and a return on equity of 838.32%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.83 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Masco Co. will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.65%. This is a boost from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. Masco’s payout ratio is presently 32.98%.

Insider Activity

In other Masco news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 60,267 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,601,988.12. This represents a 26.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Masco Company 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.