First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. Sells 1,073 Shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. reduced its stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 4.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 21,754 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 1,073 shares during the period. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Masco were worth $1,579,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MAS. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Masco by 6.7% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,031 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $170,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC grew its position in Masco by 0.3% during the third quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 44,940 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,756,000 after buying an additional 132 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC grew its position in Masco by 1.9% during the third quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 7,031 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $590,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC grew its position in Masco by 1.8% during the third quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 7,917 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $665,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the period. Finally, American National Bank & Trust grew its position in Masco by 1.0% during the third quarter. American National Bank & Trust now owns 14,846 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,246,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the period. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Masco Stock Performance

NYSE:MAS opened at $79.26 on Monday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $76.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $78.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74. The company has a market cap of $17.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.25. Masco Co. has a twelve month low of $63.81 and a twelve month high of $86.70.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last posted its quarterly 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. Masco had a net margin of 10.54% and a return on equity of 615.54%. The firm had revenue of $1.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.00 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Masco Co. will post 4.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Masco Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Masco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on MAS. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 price target (down previously from $92.00) on shares of Masco in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered shares of Masco from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $79.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Masco from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Masco from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating 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 dropped their target price for the company from $96.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Masco presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $86.27.

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.