Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) Shares Sold by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank cut its position in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS - Free Report) by 15.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 298,773 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 55,777 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned approximately 0.14% of Masco worth $25,079,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MAS. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA acquired a new stake in Masco in the 3rd quarter valued at $200,000. Glenmede Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in shares of Masco by 10.8% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 15,488 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,300,000 after acquiring an additional 1,508 shares during the period. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Masco in the 3rd quarter worth $105,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in shares of Masco by 0.6% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 588,402 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $49,390,000 after purchasing an additional 3,613 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP increased its stake in Masco by 4,498.9% in the 3rd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 8,094 shares of the construction company's stock worth $679,000 after purchasing an additional 7,918 shares in the last quarter. 93.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on MAS shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Masco from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Masco from $95.00 to $94.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada downgraded Masco from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and raised their price target for the company from $79.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Masco from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Masco from $80.00 to $83.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Masco currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $85.96.

Masco Price Performance

Masco stock traded up $0.14 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $80.56. The company had a trading volume of 684,524 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,789,307. Masco Co. has a 1 year low of $59.72 and a 1 year high of $86.70. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $81.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $75.76. The company has a market capitalization of $17.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a current ratio of 1.83 and a quick ratio of 1.21.

Masco (NYSE:MAS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The construction company reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08. Masco had a return on equity of 615.54% and a net margin of 10.54%. The company had revenue of $1.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.00 earnings per share. Masco's quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Masco Co. will post 4.09 EPS for the current year.

Masco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.44%. Masco's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.85%.

Insider Activity at Masco

In other Masco news, VP Kenneth G. Cole sold 37,814 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.32, for a total value of $2,961,592.48. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 36,980 shares in the company, valued at $2,896,273.60. The trade was a 50.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.