Banco Santander S.A. Takes $284,000 Position in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Banco Santander S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 3,918 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $284,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position 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 valued at $218,063,000 after acquiring an additional 520,555 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Masco in the fourth quarter worth about $33,157,000. KBC Group NV increased its stake in Masco by 91.6% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 708,830 shares of the construction company's stock worth $51,440,000 after buying an additional 338,925 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in Masco by 10.2% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,250,400 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $235,881,000 after buying an additional 299,520 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its stake in Masco by 49.2% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 883,859 shares of the construction company's stock worth $74,192,000 after acquiring an additional 291,658 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.91% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MAS. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Masco from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Citigroup cut their price target on Masco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective 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. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Masco from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their target price for the company from $96.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $74.00 price target on shares of Masco in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $86.32.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the business'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 in the company, valued at $4,601,988.12. The trade was a 26.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Masco Stock Performance

MAS stock traded up $0.13 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $71.52. The stock had a trading volume of 518,148 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,532,058. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $76.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $78.67. The stock has a market cap of $15.16 billion, a PE ratio of 19.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. Masco Co. has a 52-week low of $63.81 and a 52-week high of $86.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.75.

Masco (NYSE:MAS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.83 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Masco Co. will post 4.34 EPS for the current year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This is an increase from Masco's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.73%. Masco's payout ratio is presently 32.98%.

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.