Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI Purchases 550 Shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI raised its position in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 14.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,430 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 550 shares during the quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI’s holdings in Masco were worth $322,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Masco during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Masco during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Masco during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Masco during the third quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Masco during the third quarter valued at about $43,000. Institutional investors own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Masco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Masco from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of Masco to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Masco presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $86.32.

Masco Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of MAS stock opened at $73.63 on Thursday. Masco Co. has a 52-week low of $63.81 and a 52-week high of $86.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.75. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $76.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $78.82. The company has a market capitalization of $15.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.58, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 in the prior year, the business posted $0.83 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Masco Co. will post 4.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.68%. This is an increase from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. Masco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.98%.

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.