Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) Shares Acquired by Hills Bank & Trust Co

Hills Bank & Trust Co increased its stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 5.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,801 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,138 shares during the quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co’s holdings in Masco were worth $1,582,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in shares of Masco by 21.0% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,997,839 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $218,063,000 after acquiring an additional 520,555 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Masco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,157,000. KBC Group NV raised its position in shares of Masco by 91.6% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 708,830 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $51,440,000 after purchasing an additional 338,925 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in shares of Masco by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,250,400 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $235,881,000 after buying an additional 299,520 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted 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 worth $74,192,000 after buying an additional 291,658 shares during the period. 93.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MAS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Masco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Masco from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays increased their target price on Masco from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Oppenheimer raised Masco from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $89.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Nine equities 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.32.

Insider Activity at Masco

In related news, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of Masco stock in a transaction dated 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 directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.36, for a total transaction of $1,658,768.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 60,267 shares in the company, valued at $4,601,988.12. This represents a 26.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Masco Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of MAS stock opened at $70.35 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $76.04 and a 200-day moving average of $78.48. The stock has a market cap of $14.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. Masco Co. has a 52-week low of $63.81 and a 52-week high of $86.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.75.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 last year, the firm earned $0.83 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Masco Co. will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This is an increase from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Masco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.98%.

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.