Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. Cuts Stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lessened its holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 47,056 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 1,037 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Masco were worth $3,415,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of Masco by 21.0% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,997,839 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $218,063,000 after buying an additional 520,555 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Masco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,157,000. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in shares of Masco by 91.6% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 708,830 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $51,440,000 after purchasing an additional 338,925 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of Masco by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,250,400 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $235,881,000 after buying an additional 299,520 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its position in Masco by 49.2% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 883,859 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $74,192,000 after buying an additional 291,658 shares during the period. 93.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.78, for a total value of $225,317.42. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 33,027 shares in the company, valued at $2,370,678.06. The trade was a 8.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.36, for a total value of $1,658,768.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 60,267 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,601,988.12. This represents a 26.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Masco Price Performance

NYSE MAS opened at $71.64 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $75.96 and its 200 day moving average is $78.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.75. Masco Co. has a fifty-two week low of $63.81 and a fifty-two week high of $86.70. The company has a market capitalization of $15.19 billion, a PE ratio of 19.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.01. Masco had a net margin of 10.50% and a return on equity of 838.32%. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.83 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Masco Co. will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This is a boost from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.73%. Masco’s payout ratio is 32.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on MAS shares. Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of Masco to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Masco from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Masco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Oppenheimer raised shares of Masco from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $89.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $96.00 to $89.00 in a report on Monday, December 16th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Masco presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.32.

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.