12th Street Asset Management Company LLC Sells 2,192 Shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

12th Street Asset Management Company LLC cut its stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 271,132 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 2,192 shares during the period. Masco makes up about 3.2% of 12th Street Asset Management Company LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. 12th Street Asset Management Company LLC’s holdings in Masco were worth $19,676,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MAS. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Masco by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 263,155 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $22,089,000 after acquiring an additional 7,089 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in Masco by 139.9% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,262 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $106,000 after acquiring an additional 736 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in Masco by 86.4% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 673 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 312 shares during the period. Sigma Planning Corp lifted its position in Masco by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 5,674 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $476,000 after acquiring an additional 351 shares during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Masco during the 3rd quarter valued at about $43,000. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on MAS shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Zelman & Associates raised shares of Masco to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Masco from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $74.00 target price on shares of Masco in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Nine investment 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $86.32.

Insider Transactions at Masco

In related news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of Masco stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 60,267 shares in the company, valued at $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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 33,027 shares in the company, valued at $2,370,678.06. This represents a 8.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Masco Stock Down 2.8 %

Shares of MAS stock opened at $69.10 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $14.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $76.13 and a 200 day moving average of $78.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74. Masco Co. has a twelve month low of $63.81 and a twelve month high of $86.70.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.01. Masco had a return on equity of 838.32% and a net margin of 10.50%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.83 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Masco Co. will post 4.34 EPS for the current year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.79%. This is an increase from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. Masco’s payout ratio is 32.98%.

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.