Haverford Trust Co Has $33.65 Million Stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Haverford Trust Co lifted its position in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 463,733 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,174 shares during the period. Haverford Trust Co owned 0.21% of Masco worth $33,653,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp raised its position in Masco by 1.9% in the third 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. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in shares of Masco by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,250,400 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $235,881,000 after purchasing an additional 299,520 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in Masco by 21.0% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,997,839 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $218,063,000 after purchasing an additional 520,555 shares during the last quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC grew its position in shares of Masco by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,016,079 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $73,737,000 after acquiring an additional 20,129 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in Masco by 49.2% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 883,859 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $74,192,000 after purchasing an additional 291,658 shares during the last quarter. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on MAS. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Masco from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Masco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Oppenheimer raised Masco from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $89.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Masco from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $86.32.

Insider Transactions at Masco

In related news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 60,267 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,601,988.12. This trade represents a 26.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.78, for a total transaction of $225,317.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 33,027 shares in the company, valued at $2,370,678.06. The trade was a 8.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Masco Price Performance

MAS stock opened at $69.65 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24. Masco Co. has a 1 year low of $63.81 and a 1 year high of $86.70. The business’s 50-day moving average is $75.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $78.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.15.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 earnings per share (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. Analysts anticipate that Masco Co. will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This is a positive change from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Masco’s payout ratio is currently 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.