Masco’s (MAS) Equal Weight Rating Reiterated at Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company restated their equal weight rating on shares of Masco (NYSE:MAS) in a research report report published on Tuesday morning, MarketBeat reports. They currently have a $85.00 price target on the construction company’s stock, down from their prior price target of $92.00.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Masco from $95.00 to $94.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Masco from $78.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada cut shares of Masco from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $79.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $96.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Monday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $85.88.

Masco Stock Performance

NYSE MAS opened at $72.69 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $15.68 billion, a PE ratio of 19.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 1.83. Masco has a 52-week low of $63.60 and a 52-week high of $86.70. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $80.41 and a 200 day simple moving average of $76.66.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The construction company reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $1.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.00 EPS. Masco’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Masco will post 4.09 EPS for the current year.

Masco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Masco’s payout ratio is currently 30.85%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp lifted its position in Masco by 1.9% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,294,294 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $864,103,000 after purchasing an additional 194,297 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Masco by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 9,830,723 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $655,414,000 after acquiring an additional 181,515 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Masco by 0.9% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,950,880 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $241,825,000 after acquiring an additional 26,259 shares in the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc increased its stake in Masco by 10.0% in the second quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 2,855,056 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $190,347,000 after acquiring an additional 259,205 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its position in Masco by 66.5% during the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,823,934 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $121,581,000 after purchasing an additional 728,690 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

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.