ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd Lowers Position in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd reduced its stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS - Free Report) by 22.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 52,644 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 15,427 shares during the quarter. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd's holdings in Masco were worth $4,419,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lifted its stake in Masco by 14.3% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 542,096 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $42,245,000 after buying an additional 67,806 shares during the period. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Masco during the second quarter worth approximately $82,363,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Masco by 2.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,300,591 shares of the construction company's stock worth $2,074,591,000 after purchasing an additional 721,117 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. raised its position in shares of Masco by 119.1% during the first quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 290,123 shares of the construction company's stock worth $22,885,000 after purchasing an additional 157,711 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Trust Walden Corp raised its position in shares of Masco by 28.3% during the second quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 467,897 shares of the construction company's stock worth $31,195,000 after purchasing an additional 103,310 shares during the period. 93.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Kenneth G. Cole sold 37,814 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.32, for a total transaction of $2,961,592.48. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 36,980 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,896,273.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Truist Financial upped their target price on Masco from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Masco from $89.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada downgraded Masco from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $79.00 to $80.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays upped their price target on Masco from $92.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Masco from $80.00 to $83.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $85.96.

Masco Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MAS traded up $0.23 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $79.25. 1,388,995 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,801,571. Masco Co. has a 52-week low of $57.18 and a 52-week high of $86.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a current ratio of 1.83 and a quick ratio of 1.21. The company has a 50-day moving average of $81.80 and a 200-day moving average of $75.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.24.

Masco (NYSE:MAS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The construction company reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08. The business had revenue of $1.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2 billion. Masco had a return on equity of 615.54% and a net margin of 10.54%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.00 EPS. Analysts forecast that Masco Co. will post 4.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Masco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 25th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.46%. Masco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.85%.

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.