Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) Shares Bought by LPL Financial LLC

LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS - Free Report) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 175,207 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 8,641 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC owned about 0.08% of Masco worth $12,715,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC increased its stake in Masco by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 465,848 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $39,103,000 after buying an additional 40,731 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in shares of Masco by 8.2% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 9,215 shares of the construction company's stock worth $774,000 after acquiring an additional 700 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its holdings in Masco by 43.1% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 38,631 shares of the construction company's stock worth $3,243,000 after purchasing an additional 11,637 shares in the last quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co acquired a new stake in Masco in the third quarter valued at about $741,000. Finally, Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in Masco by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 172,281 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $14,461,000 after purchasing an additional 18,495 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.91% of the company's stock.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer raised Masco from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $89.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Masco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Masco in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a "hold" rating and a $71.00 price target on the stock. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Masco has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $85.30.

Masco Trading Down 3.1 %

Shares of Masco stock traded down $1.96 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $60.97. 3,316,151 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,681,771. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. Masco Co. has a twelve month low of $59.90 and a twelve month high of $86.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $73.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $77.30.

Masco (NYSE:MAS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 period in the previous year, the company posted $0.83 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast 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. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. 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. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.03%. Masco's dividend payout ratio is 32.98%.

Insider Transactions at Masco

In other news, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.78, for a total value of $225,317.42. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 33,027 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,370,678.06. This trade represents a 8.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, 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 shares were sold at an average price of $76.36, for a total transaction of $1,658,768.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 60,267 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,601,988.12. This trade represents a 26.49 % decrease in their position. 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.