BMO Capital Markets Raises Masco (NYSE:MAS) Price Target to $85.00

Masco (NYSE:MAS) had its price target boosted by BMO Capital Markets from $78.00 to $85.00 in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a market perform rating on the construction company’s stock.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on MAS. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Masco from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Masco from $73.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Masco from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Masco from $88.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Masco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $81.75.

Masco Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of MAS stock opened at $82.88 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $81.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $74.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.25 billion, a PE ratio of 20.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.18, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 1.12. Masco has a 1-year low of $47.66 and a 1-year high of $86.70.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The construction company reported $1.20 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.02. Masco had a return on equity of 602.39% and a net margin of 11.59%. The business had revenue of $2.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.10 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.19 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Masco will post 4.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Kenneth G. Cole sold 37,814 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.32, for a total value of $2,961,592.48. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 36,980 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,896,273.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Masco in the 2nd quarter valued at $82,363,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Masco by 956.3% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 989,640 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $83,070,000 after buying an additional 895,950 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Masco by 66.5% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,823,934 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $121,581,000 after buying an additional 728,690 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Masco by 2.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,300,591 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,074,591,000 after buying an additional 721,117 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Masco by 55.8% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,538,952 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $121,391,000 after acquiring an additional 551,203 shares during the period. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.