Commerce Bank Grows Position in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Commerce Bank raised its stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 15.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,451 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,888 shares during the quarter. Commerce Bank’s holdings in Masco were worth $1,213,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in Masco during the first quarter worth $44,000. BOKF NA raised its holdings in Masco by 2.5% during the first quarter. BOKF NA now owns 6,178 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $480,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Caxton Associates LP raised its holdings in Masco by 27.6% during the first quarter. Caxton Associates LP now owns 4,302 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $339,000 after purchasing an additional 931 shares during the last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI acquired a new position in Masco during the first quarter worth $1,617,000. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Masco by 268.0% in the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 152,699 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $12,045,000 after acquiring an additional 111,208 shares during the last quarter. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group boosted their price target on Masco from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays upped their target price on Masco from $92.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Masco from $89.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Masco from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut Masco from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $79.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Masco currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $85.96.

Masco Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of Masco stock opened at $79.01 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $81.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $75.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.01, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.24. Masco Co. has a twelve month low of $58.91 and a twelve month high of $86.70.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The construction company reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08. Masco had a return on equity of 615.54% and a net margin of 10.54%. The business had revenue of $1.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.00 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Masco Co. will post 4.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Masco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 25th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. Masco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Masco

In other Masco news, VP Kenneth G. Cole sold 37,814 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.32, for a total transaction 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 approximately $2,896,273.60. This trade represents a 50.56 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.