Iowa State Bank Grows Position in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Iowa State Bank raised its holdings in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 50,751 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 287 shares during the period. Iowa State Bank’s holdings in Masco were worth $3,683,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its position in Masco by 20.9% during the second quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 38,501 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,567,000 after purchasing an additional 6,643 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Masco by 188.5% in the second quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,474 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $98,000 after purchasing an additional 963 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in shares of Masco by 22.7% during the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 62,323 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,033,000 after purchasing an additional 11,525 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Masco by 22.9% in the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 849,161 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $56,614,000 after purchasing an additional 158,232 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC grew its stake in Masco by 6.9% during the 2nd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 10,622 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $708,000 after buying an additional 688 shares during the last quarter. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Masco from $92.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Masco from $95.00 to $94.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Masco from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered Masco from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $79.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $96.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $85.88.

Masco Price Performance

NYSE MAS traded up $1.16 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $73.36. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 461,105 shares, compared to its average volume of 718,952. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a current ratio of 1.83 and a quick ratio of 1.21. Masco Co. has a 1-year low of $63.81 and a 1-year high of $86.70. The company’s 50-day moving average is $78.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.25.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The construction company reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.08. The business had revenue of $1.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2 billion. Masco had a return on equity of 615.54% and a net margin of 10.54%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.00 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Masco Co. will post 4.09 EPS for the current year.

Masco Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 25th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were given 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 dividend yield of 1.58%. Masco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.85%.

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.