Masco (NYSE:MAS) Raised to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Masco (NYSE:MAS) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of Masco from $82.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Masco from $65.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Barclays set a $71.00 target price on shares of Masco and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Masco in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a “hold” rating and a $71.00 target price for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Masco from $82.00 to $71.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $73.63.

Masco Price Performance

Shares of MAS opened at $61.79 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.03 billion, a PE ratio of 16.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.15. Masco has a 1-year low of $56.55 and a 1-year high of $86.70. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $64.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $72.34.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $0.87 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $1.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.84 billion. Masco had a net margin of 10.50% and a return on equity of 838.32%. Masco’s quarterly revenue was down 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.93 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Masco will post 4.34 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Masco

In other Masco news, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.78, for a total value of $225,317.42. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 33,027 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,370,678.06. This represents a 8.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.36, for a total transaction of $1,658,768.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 60,267 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,601,988.12. The trade was a 26.49% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Masco

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MAS. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Masco in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $126,057,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Masco in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $129,306,000. Wealthquest Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Masco in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $111,722,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Masco by 47.4% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,159,518 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $289,253,000 after buying an additional 1,337,889 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Masco by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 27,092,099 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,883,985,000 after buying an additional 984,403 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

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.