Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) Short Interest Down 15.5% in February

Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) saw a significant decline in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 4,260,000 shares, a decline of 15.5% from the February 13th total of 5,040,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,480,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.9 days. Approximately 2.0% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 60,267 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,601,988.12. The trade was a 26.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of the business’s 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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 33,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,370,678.06. The trade was a 8.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Masco

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Masco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Masco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Masco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new position in shares of Masco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Masco by 89.0% during the 4th 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MAS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $74.00 price objective on shares of Masco in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Masco from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Masco from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Masco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Masco has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $86.32.

Masco Stock Performance

Masco stock opened at $71.07 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $76.00 and a 200-day moving average of $78.42. Masco has a 1 year low of $63.81 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. The company has a market capitalization of $15.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 earnings per share 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 quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.83 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Masco will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This is an increase from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Masco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.