Van ECK Associates Corp Boosts Stock Position in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS - Free Report) by 10.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,250,400 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 299,520 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned 1.51% of Masco worth $235,881,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Masco by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,294,294 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $864,103,000 after purchasing an additional 194,297 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of Masco by 21.0% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,997,839 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $218,063,000 after purchasing an additional 520,555 shares during the last quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC increased its position in shares of Masco by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 995,950 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $83,600,000 after purchasing an additional 14,870 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Masco by 956.3% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 989,640 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $83,070,000 after acquiring an additional 895,950 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Masco by 8.6% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 922,566 shares of the construction company's stock worth $77,440,000 after purchasing an additional 73,405 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.91% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on MAS shares. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Masco from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $96.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Masco from $80.00 to $83.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Masco from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. 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 note on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on Masco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $86.32.

Masco Price Performance

Shares of Masco stock traded up $0.80 on Friday, reaching $78.42. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,292,936 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,376,449. The company has a market capitalization of $16.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.86, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.25. Masco Co. has a 52-week low of $63.81 and a 52-week high of $86.70. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $76.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $78.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74.

Masco (NYSE:MAS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.01. Masco had a return on equity of 615.54% and a net margin of 10.54%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.83 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Masco Co. will post 4.09 EPS for the current year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.58%. This is a boost from Masco's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Masco's payout ratio is presently 30.85%.

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.