Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Buys 7,851 Shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS - Free Report) by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 493,445 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 7,851 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned approximately 0.23% of Masco worth $41,420,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of MAS. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Masco in the second quarter worth $82,363,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in shares of Masco by 956.3% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 989,640 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $83,070,000 after purchasing an additional 895,950 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Masco by 66.5% in the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,823,934 shares of the construction company's stock worth $121,581,000 after purchasing an additional 728,690 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Masco by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,300,591 shares of the construction company's stock worth $2,074,591,000 after buying an additional 721,117 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Masco by 55.8% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,538,952 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $121,391,000 after buying an additional 551,203 shares during the last quarter. 93.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Masco

In related news, VP Kenneth G. Cole sold 37,814 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.32, for a total transaction of $2,961,592.48. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 36,980 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,896,273.60. This represents a 50.56 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Masco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MAS traded down $0.77 during trading on Friday, hitting $78.42. 1,181,071 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,800,371. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $81.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $75.14. The company has a market cap of $16.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.86, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.24. Masco Co. has a 52-week low of $58.89 and a 52-week high of $86.70. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The construction company reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08. Masco had a net margin of 10.54% and a return on equity of 615.54%. The business had revenue of $1.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.00 EPS. The company's revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Masco Co. will post 4.09 EPS for the current year.

Masco Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.48%. Masco's payout ratio is 30.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on MAS shares. 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 report on Wednesday, October 30th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Masco from $78.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Masco from $80.00 to $83.50 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Masco from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Masco from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Masco currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $85.96.

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.