Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 0.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 651,488 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 875 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Masco were worth $47,278,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MAS. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in Masco by 956.3% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 989,640 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $83,070,000 after purchasing an additional 895,950 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in shares of Masco by 21.0% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,997,839 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $218,063,000 after acquiring an additional 520,555 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake in shares of Masco by 86.5% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 634,740 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $42,318,000 after acquiring an additional 294,409 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Masco by 49.2% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 883,859 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $74,192,000 after acquiring an additional 291,658 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky boosted its stake in shares of Masco by 89.5% in the second quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 579,597 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $38,642,000 after acquiring an additional 273,718 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MAS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $96.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Loop Capital lifted their price target on Masco from $76.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Oppenheimer raised Masco from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $89.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday. StockNews.com downgraded Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Masco from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $86.96.

Masco Price Performance

NYSE:MAS opened at $72.09 on Friday. Masco Co. has a 52 week low of $63.81 and a 52 week high of $86.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74. The company has a market capitalization of $15.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.25. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $77.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.15.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The construction company reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08. Masco had a return on equity of 615.54% and a net margin of 10.54%. The business had revenue of $1.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.00 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Masco Co. will post 4.09 EPS for the current year.

Masco Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 25th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. Masco’s payout ratio is 30.85%.

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.