Natixis Advisors LLC Purchases 6,876 Shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Natixis Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 236,201 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,876 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC’s holdings in Masco were worth $19,827,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in Masco by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 9,830,723 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $655,414,000 after purchasing an additional 181,515 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of Masco by 0.9% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,950,880 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $241,825,000 after buying an additional 26,259 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc increased its stake in shares of Masco by 10.0% during the second quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 2,855,056 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $190,347,000 after buying an additional 259,205 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Masco by 16.6% during the first quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 2,245,644 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $177,136,000 after buying an additional 319,029 shares during the period. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Masco by 66.5% during the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,823,934 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $121,581,000 after purchasing an additional 728,690 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Kenneth G. Cole sold 37,814 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.32, for a total value of $2,961,592.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 36,980 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,896,273.60. This trade represents a 50.56 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Masco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MAS opened at $76.17 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $81.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.34. 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 Co. has a 1-year low of $58.89 and a 1-year high of $86.70. The company has a market cap of $16.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.24.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The construction company reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08. The business had revenue of $1.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2 billion. Masco had a return on equity of 615.54% and a net margin of 10.54%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.00 EPS. Analysts forecast that Masco Co. will post 4.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Masco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 25th. Shareholders 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 yield of 1.52%. Masco’s payout ratio is 30.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MAS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Masco from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Royal Bank of Canada cut Masco from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $79.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Masco from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Masco from $78.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Masco from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Masco presently 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.