4,258 Shares in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) Acquired by Blueshift Asset Management LLC

Blueshift Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 4,258 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $309,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. iA Global Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Masco by 22.7% during the fourth quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 30,451 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $2,210,000 after purchasing an additional 5,643 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its position in shares of Masco by 49.3% during the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 676,356 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $49,083,000 after buying an additional 223,212 shares in the last quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Masco by 11.7% during the 4th quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 101,190 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $7,343,000 after acquiring an additional 10,616 shares during the period. Vinva Investment Management Ltd increased its holdings in Masco by 13.9% in the 4th quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 11,530 shares of the construction company's stock worth $836,000 after acquiring an additional 1,410 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new position in Masco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $96,000. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MAS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Masco from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $74.00 price objective on shares of Masco in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Masco from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Zelman & Associates raised Masco to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $86.32.

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Masco Price Performance

Shares of Masco stock traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $70.44. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,612,016 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,568,329. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $75.71 and a 200-day moving average price of $78.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market cap of $14.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. Masco Co. has a one year low of $63.81 and a one year high of $86.70.

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

Masco Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.76%. This is a positive change from Masco's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. Masco's payout ratio is presently 32.98%.

Insider Activity

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

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.