Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Boosts Holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS - Free Report) by 16.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 65,598 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 9,287 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC's holdings in Masco were worth $4,760,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MAS. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Masco by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 263,155 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $22,089,000 after acquiring an additional 7,089 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in Masco by 139.9% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,262 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $106,000 after purchasing an additional 736 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its stake in Masco by 86.4% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 673 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares during the last quarter. Sigma Planning Corp raised its holdings in Masco by 6.6% in the third quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 5,674 shares of the construction company's stock worth $476,000 after purchasing an additional 351 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Masco during the third quarter valued at about $43,000. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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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 shares were sold at an average price of $71.78, for a total transaction of $225,317.42. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 33,027 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,370,678.06. This represents a 8.68 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of Masco stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,601,988.12. This represents a 26.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on MAS. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Masco from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $96.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Oppenheimer raised Masco from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $89.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Masco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Masco from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Zelman & Associates raised Masco to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Nine 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Masco has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $86.32.

Masco Stock Performance

Shares of Masco stock traded up $0.76 during trading on Monday, hitting $71.07. 2,520,139 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,586,941. 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. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.90, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $76.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $78.47.

Masco (NYSE:MAS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 company posted $0.83 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Masco Co. will post 4.34 EPS for the current year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This is a positive change from Masco's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Masco's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.