EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC Grows Stock Position in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 47,398 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 389 shares during the quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Masco were worth $3,440,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Masco by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 263,155 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $22,089,000 after buying an additional 7,089 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in Masco by 139.9% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,262 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $106,000 after buying an additional 736 shares in the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc lifted its holdings in Masco by 9.1% during the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 77,812 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $6,532,000 after buying an additional 6,483 shares during the last quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Masco in the third quarter valued at approximately $230,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in Masco by 86.4% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 673 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 312 shares during the period. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Masco

In other news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 60,267 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,601,988.12. This represents 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 at this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Masco Stock Performance

MAS stock opened at $71.37 on Wednesday. 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 stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $76.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $78.67. Masco Co. has a 12-month low of $63.81 and a 12-month high of $86.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.13 billion, a PE ratio of 18.98, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 last year, the business posted $0.83 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Masco Co. will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 1.74%. This is a positive change 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 32.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MAS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group cut their price objective on Masco from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $74.00 price objective on shares of Masco in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Zelman & Associates raised Masco to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Masco from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Oppenheimer upgraded Masco from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $89.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Nine 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.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $86.32.

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.