Masco (NYSE:MAS) Price Target Lowered to $65.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Masco (NYSE:MAS) had its target price reduced by Wells Fargo & Company from $82.00 to $65.00 in a report released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the construction company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Zelman & Associates raised Masco to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Masco from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Masco from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Masco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $96.00 to $89.00 in a report on Monday, December 16th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Masco currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.37.

Masco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MAS opened at $62.30 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.75. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $71.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $76.30. The stock has a market cap of $13.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.57, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. Masco has a fifty-two week low of $57.27 and a fifty-two week high of $86.70.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business posted $0.83 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Masco will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.31 dividend. This is a boost from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.99%. Masco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of Masco stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.36, for a total transaction of $1,658,768.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 60,267 shares in the company, valued at $4,601,988.12. This trade represents a 26.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of Masco stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.78, for a total value of $225,317.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 33,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,370,678.06. The trade was a 8.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Masco

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MAS. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Masco by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,129,771 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $371,265,000 after acquiring an additional 58,739 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Masco by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,900,643 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $283,070,000 after purchasing an additional 337,164 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Masco by 10.2% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,250,400 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $235,881,000 after purchasing an additional 299,520 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in Masco by 21.0% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,997,839 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $218,063,000 after purchasing an additional 520,555 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Masco by 14.7% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,821,629 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $204,766,000 after purchasing an additional 360,931 shares in the last quarter. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.