Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) Shares Bought by Wealthfront Advisers LLC

Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS - Free Report) by 17.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 80,092 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 11,696 shares during the quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC's holdings in Masco were worth $5,812,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MAS. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Masco by 2.8% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 263,155 shares of the construction company's stock worth $22,089,000 after acquiring an additional 7,089 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Masco by 139.9% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,262 shares of the construction company's stock worth $106,000 after acquiring an additional 736 shares during the last quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Masco in the third quarter valued at $230,000. Covestor Ltd increased 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. Finally, Sigma Planning Corp increased its stake in Masco by 6.6% in the third quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 5,674 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $476,000 after purchasing an additional 351 shares during the last quarter. 93.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on MAS. UBS Group dropped their target price on Masco from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Zelman & Associates upgraded Masco to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Masco from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $96.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Masco from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on 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 given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $86.32.

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Insider Transactions at Masco

In related news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Masco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MAS opened at $71.10 on Thursday. Masco Co. has a 1-year low of $63.81 and a 1-year high of $86.70. The business has a 50-day moving average of $76.13 and a 200-day moving average of $78.61. 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 company has a market capitalization of $15.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.91, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24.

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 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 period in the prior year, the business earned $0.83 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Masco Co. will post 4.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a $0.31 dividend. This is an increase 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 dividend yield of 1.74%. Masco's dividend payout ratio is presently 32.98%.

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.

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