Marble Harbor Investment Counsel LLC Takes $511,000 Position in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Marble Harbor Investment Counsel LLC acquired a new stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund acquired 7,035 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $511,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MAS. Banco Santander S.A. acquired a new position in Masco in the 4th quarter valued at about $284,000. Machina Capital S.A.S. grew its holdings in shares of Masco by 114.2% in the fourth quarter. Machina Capital S.A.S. now owns 14,807 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,075,000 after purchasing an additional 7,895 shares in the last quarter. Andra AP fonden grew its holdings in shares of Masco by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 208,600 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $15,138,000 after purchasing an additional 5,600 shares in the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Masco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,081,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Masco by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 50,388 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,657,000 after purchasing an additional 3,611 shares in the last quarter. 93.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 60,267 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,601,988.12. This represents a 26.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Masco from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays boosted their target price on Masco from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Masco from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com downgraded Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Masco from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.32.

Masco Stock Performance

Shares of MAS stock opened at $75.25 on Friday. Masco Co. 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 quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.75. The firm has a market cap of $15.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.01, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $76.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $78.75.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 business earned $0.83 EPS. Analysts predict that Masco Co. will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.65%. This is a boost from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Masco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.98%.

Masco 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.