Man Group plc Increases Holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Man Group plc raised its stake in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 133.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 303,184 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 173,311 shares during the period. Man Group plc owned about 0.14% of Masco worth $22,002,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Nomura Holdings Inc. raised its stake in Masco by 47.6% during the 4th quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 51,861 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,764,000 after buying an additional 16,722 shares during the last quarter. Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP purchased a new stake in Masco during the 4th quarter valued at $369,000. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in Masco by 94.0% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 555,165 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $40,288,000 after buying an additional 268,950 shares during the last quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV purchased a new stake in shares of Masco in the 4th quarter worth $298,000. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Masco by 10.8% in the 4th quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 329,254 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $23,894,000 after purchasing an additional 32,212 shares in the last quarter. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Masco

In other Masco news, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $2,370,678.06. This represents a 8.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.36, for a total transaction 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 $4,601,988.12. This trade represents a 26.49% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on MAS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Masco from $82.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Zelman & Associates upgraded Masco to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Masco from $72.00 to $70.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Barclays set a $71.00 price objective on Masco and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 price objective (down from $91.00) on shares of Masco in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Masco currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $73.63.

Masco Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of MAS stock opened at $67.68 on Friday. Masco Co. has a 52-week low of $56.55 and a 52-week high of $86.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.28 billion, a PE ratio of 18.00, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.23. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $64.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $72.91.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.05). Masco had a net margin of 10.50% and a return on equity of 838.32%. The company had revenue of $1.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.84 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.93 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Masco Co. will post 4.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Masco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. Masco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.88%.

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.