Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC Makes New $691,000 Investment in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC acquired a new stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 9,522 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $691,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Masco by 139.9% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,262 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $106,000 after acquiring an additional 736 shares in the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Masco during the third quarter valued at about $241,000. Metis Global Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Masco by 1.9% during the third quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 7,031 shares of the construction company's stock worth $590,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Masco in the third quarter valued at approximately $292,000. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in Masco by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 32,765 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $2,750,000 after buying an additional 2,067 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.91% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MAS. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $74.00 price target on shares of Masco in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Zelman & Associates raised Masco to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Masco from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Masco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Masco from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $86.32.

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Masco Stock Down 1.1 %

Masco stock traded down $0.76 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $69.65. The stock had a trading volume of 6,155,154 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,574,617. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $75.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $78.25. The company has a market capitalization of $14.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.52, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. 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 Co. has a 12 month low of $63.81 and a 12 month high of $86.70.

Masco (NYSE:MAS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 last year, the business earned $0.83 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Masco Co. will post 4.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This is an increase from Masco's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.78%. Masco's payout ratio is presently 32.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Masco news, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of the business'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 completion of the sale, the vice president now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 60,267 shares in the company, valued at $4,601,988.12. This represents a 26.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.