Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Cuts Stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC cut its position in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 14.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 191,851 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 33,317 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC’s holdings in Masco were worth $12,850,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MAS. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Masco by 1.2% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,787,414 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,378,337,000 after purchasing an additional 298,116 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its holdings in Masco by 4.2% during the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 9,021,312 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $481,875,000 after buying an additional 359,562 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in Masco by 15.4% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 5,320,936 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $284,404,000 after buying an additional 711,988 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of Masco by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,934,986 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $210,325,000 after buying an additional 145,472 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AustralianSuper Pty Ltd grew its stake in shares of Masco by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 3,333,651 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $223,288,000 after acquiring an additional 57,395 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Masco

In related news, VP Kenneth G. Cole sold 36,210 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.65, for a total value of $2,703,076.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 58,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,395,765.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, VP Kenneth G. Cole sold 36,210 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.65, for a total value of $2,703,076.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 58,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,395,765.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Richard Allan Marshall sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.05, for a total value of $385,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 10,465 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $806,328.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 83,762 shares of company stock worth $6,337,597 over the last quarter. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Masco from $73.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Masco from $65.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. StockNews.com cut Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on Masco in a research report on Friday, January 19th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Masco from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Masco has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $69.62.

Masco Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of MAS stock traded up $0.71 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $72.73. 131,199 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,008,850. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $75.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $66.57. The stock has a market cap of $16.04 billion, a PE ratio of 17.95, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.25. Masco Co. has a 1 year low of $47.66 and a 1 year high of $78.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 30.05.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The construction company reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.17. Masco had a return on equity of 3,111.50% and a net margin of 11.40%. The business had revenue of $1.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.79 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.65 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Masco Co. will post 4.11 EPS for the current year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 22nd were given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This is an increase from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 21st. Masco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.93%.

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.