Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) Receives $86.32 Consensus PT from Brokerages

Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $86.32.

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Masco from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Oppenheimer raised Masco from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $89.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of Masco to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th.

Insider Transactions at Masco

In related news, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 33,027 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,370,678.06. This trade represents a 8.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of Masco stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $4,601,988.12. This trade represents a 26.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MAS. Commerce Bank lifted its position in shares of Masco by 15.0% in the third quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 14,451 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,213,000 after buying an additional 1,888 shares during the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Masco during the third quarter valued at approximately $208,000. Raymond James Trust N.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Masco by 9.5% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 5,319 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $446,000 after acquiring an additional 461 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC acquired a new stake in Masco during the third quarter valued at approximately $470,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Masco by 75.2% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,583 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $217,000 after buying an additional 1,109 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Masco Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of NYSE:MAS opened at $68.63 on Tuesday. Masco has a 12-month low of $63.81 and a 12-month high of $86.70. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $75.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $77.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74. The firm has a market cap of $14.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.25, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last issued 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 return on equity of 838.32% and a net margin of 10.50%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.83 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Masco will post 4.34 EPS for the current year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.81%. This is a boost from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. Masco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.