Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC cut its holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 28.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 45,451 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 18,293 shares during the quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Masco were worth $3,585,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MAS. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Masco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $122,144,000. Confluence Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Masco in the 1st quarter valued at $78,181,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Masco by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 25,787,414 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,378,337,000 after acquiring an additional 298,116 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in Masco by 14.9% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,957,357 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $131,437,000 after purchasing an additional 254,285 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in shares of Masco by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 5,574,976 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $373,411,000 after purchasing an additional 254,040 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Masco Price Performance

Masco stock traded down $0.56 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $64.22. The company had a trading volume of 254,133 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,913,951. Masco Co. has a 12-month low of $47.66 and a 12-month high of $78.94. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $68.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $70.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 18.76, a current ratio of 1.74 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The company has a market capitalization of $14.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.24.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.06. Masco had a return on equity of 865.37% and a net margin of 11.60%. The business had revenue of $1.93 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.94 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.87 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Masco Co. will post 4.11 EPS for the current year.

Masco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 24th were paid a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.81%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 23rd. Masco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.43%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on MAS. StockNews.com cut Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Loop Capital cut their target price on shares of Masco from $79.00 to $76.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Masco from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Masco from $75.00 to $74.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Masco from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Masco currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.15.

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.