Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Decreases Holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. reduced its stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS - Free Report) by 10.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 105,266 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 12,359 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Masco were worth $7,639,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MAS. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in Masco by 17.3% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 901 shares of the construction company's stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the period. Equitable Trust Co. grew its stake in shares of Masco by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 8,089 shares of the construction company's stock worth $587,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Tealwood Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Masco by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Tealwood Asset Management Inc. now owns 17,921 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,301,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in Masco by 26.7% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 703 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Keybank National Association OH boosted its holdings in Masco by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 4,165 shares of the construction company's stock worth $302,000 after buying an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on MAS shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $74.00 price objective on shares of Masco in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Masco in a research report on Tuesday. They issued a "hold" rating and a $71.00 price target for the company. Oppenheimer upgraded Masco from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $89.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of Masco from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Ten equities 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Masco has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $85.30.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was 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 owns 60,267 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,601,988.12. This trade represents a 26.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were 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 directly owns 33,027 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,370,678.06. The trade was a 8.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Masco Stock Performance

Shares of MAS stock traded up $1.23 on Wednesday, reaching $71.07. The stock had a trading volume of 1,197,499 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,651,415. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. Masco Co. has a 12 month low of $63.81 and a 12 month high of $86.70. The firm's 50-day moving average is $74.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.73.

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

Masco Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a $0.31 dividend. This is an increase from Masco's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. Masco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.