Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) Shares Bought by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 4.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,574,976 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 254,040 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned approximately 2.48% of Masco worth $373,411,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MAS. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Masco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Masco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Center for Financial Planning Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Masco by 270.6% during the third quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 667 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 487 shares in the last quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC grew its position in Masco by 70.6% in the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,051 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 435 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its position in Masco by 19.5% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,115 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $75,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. 93.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Masco

In other Masco news, VP Richard Allan Marshall sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.05, for a total value of $385,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 10,465 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $806,328.25. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Jai Shah sold 42,552 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.36, for a total transaction of $3,249,270.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 15,830 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,208,778.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Richard Allan Marshall sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.05, for a total value of $385,250.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 10,465 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $806,328.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 83,762 shares of company stock valued at $6,337,597 in the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Masco Stock Performance

NYSE:MAS traded up $0.22 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $70.07. The company had a trading volume of 2,197,747 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,081,739. The firm has a market cap of $15.43 billion, a PE ratio of 17.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.25. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $75.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $67.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 18.76, a current ratio of 1.74 and a quick ratio of 1.09. Masco Co. has a 1-year low of $47.66 and a 1-year high of $78.94.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.94 billion. Masco had a net margin of 11.60% and a return on equity of 865.37%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.87 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Masco Co. will post 4.12 EPS for the current year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 22nd were given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.66%. This is an increase from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 21st. Masco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MAS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Masco from $65.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Masco from $75.00 to $74.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Masco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Masco from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Oppenheimer began coverage on Masco in a research report on Friday, January 19th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.15.

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.