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

Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 10.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 3,250,400 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 299,520 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Masco were worth $235,881,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sovran Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Masco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $269,000. Equitable Trust Co. increased its holdings in Masco by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 8,089 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $587,000 after buying an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Trust & Investment Management Co raised its holdings in Masco by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Trust & Investment Management Co now owns 67,367 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,889,000 after purchasing an additional 2,005 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of Masco by 9.9% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 29,041 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,108,000 after buying an additional 2,626 shares during the period. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Masco by 42.7% during the fourth quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,286 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $529,000 after acquiring an additional 2,180 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on MAS shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Masco from $80.00 to $83.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Loop Capital increased their price target on shares of Masco from $76.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Oppenheimer raised Masco from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $89.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Masco from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of Masco from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Masco currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $85.58.

Masco Stock Performance

Shares of MAS opened at $76.71 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $76.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $78.70. The company has a market capitalization of $16.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.25. Masco Co. 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, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.01. Masco had a return on equity of 615.54% and a net margin of 10.54%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.83 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Masco Co. will post 4.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders 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 yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. This is a positive change from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Masco’s payout ratio is currently 30.85%.

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.