Principal Financial Group Inc. Increases Stock Position in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 263,155 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,089 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.12% of Masco worth $22,089,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in Masco by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,294,294 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $864,103,000 after acquiring an additional 194,297 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Masco by 1.9% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 9,830,723 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $655,414,000 after acquiring an additional 181,515 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in Masco by 0.9% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,950,880 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $241,825,000 after purchasing an additional 26,259 shares in the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc lifted its position in Masco by 10.0% in 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 purchasing an additional 259,205 shares during the period. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Masco by 66.5% in 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 buying an additional 728,690 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Masco Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE MAS opened at $74.13 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $79.56 and a 200-day moving average of $76.91. Masco Co. has a 52-week low of $63.60 and a 52-week high of $86.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.99 billion, a PE ratio of 19.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.23.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The construction company reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.08. Masco had a net margin of 10.54% and a return on equity of 615.54%. The firm had revenue of $1.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.00 earnings per share. Masco’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Masco Co. will post 4.09 EPS for the current year.

Masco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were given a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. Masco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on MAS shares. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Masco from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada cut Masco from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $79.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on shares of Masco from $76.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Masco from $95.00 to $94.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of Masco from $92.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $85.88.

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.