Jones Financial Companies Lllp Acquires 1,610 Shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 52.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 4,690 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,610 shares during the quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp’s holdings in Masco were worth $340,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Masco in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Masco in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Masco in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Masco in the 3rd quarter valued at about $43,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Masco by 59.4% in the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 596 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Masco

In other Masco news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.36, for a total value of $1,658,768.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 60,267 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,601,988.12. This trade represents a 26.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Masco Stock Down 3.4 %

MAS opened at $71.37 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $76.15 and a 200 day moving average of $78.67. The company has a market cap of $15.13 billion, a PE ratio of 18.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. Masco Co. has a 12 month low of $63.81 and a 12 month high of $86.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.01. Masco had a net margin of 10.50% and a return on equity of 838.32%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.83 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Masco Co. will post 4.34 EPS for the current year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.74%. This is an increase from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. Masco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on MAS shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $74.00 price objective on shares of Masco in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Masco from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of Masco to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Masco from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $89.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.32.

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.