Trust Co. of Vermont Lowers Stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Trust Co. of Vermont lowered its stake in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 85.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 403 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 2,359 shares during the quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont’s holdings in Masco were worth $27,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its position in Masco by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 11,646 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $623,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. Paralel Advisors LLC raised its position in Masco by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Paralel Advisors LLC now owns 38,464 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,056,000 after purchasing an additional 436 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC raised its position in Masco by 19.9% in the 3rd quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 78,881 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,216,000 after purchasing an additional 13,110 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. purchased a new position in Masco in the 3rd quarter worth $1,701,000. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Masco by 34.1% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 903,196 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $48,276,000 after purchasing an additional 229,910 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Masco Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of MAS opened at $69.39 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $70.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $70.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.01, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 18.76. Masco Co. has a 1-year low of $47.66 and a 1-year high of $78.94.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.06. Masco had a net margin of 11.60% and a return on equity of 865.37%. The firm had revenue of $1.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.87 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Masco Co. will post 4.11 EPS for the current year.

Masco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 24th were paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 23rd. Masco’s payout ratio is currently 28.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Masco from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Masco from $75.00 to $74.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Loop Capital cut their price target on shares of Masco from $79.00 to $76.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Masco from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Masco presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.15.

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.