Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Acquires 1,819 Shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 6.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 28,673 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,819 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Masco were worth $2,081,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Moran Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Masco in the 4th quarter valued at $11,871,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in shares of Masco by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 302,105 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $21,924,000 after buying an additional 3,332 shares in the last quarter. NBT Bank N A NY increased its position in shares of Masco by 29.9% in the 4th quarter. NBT Bank N A NY now owns 7,380 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $536,000 after buying an additional 1,699 shares in the last quarter. Marble Harbor Investment Counsel LLC bought a new stake in shares of Masco in the 4th quarter valued at $511,000. Finally, Banco Santander S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Masco in the 4th quarter valued at $284,000. Institutional investors own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Masco Trading Up 1.6 %

Masco stock opened at $70.35 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $76.04 and a 200-day moving average of $78.48. Masco Co. has a one year low of $63.81 and a one year high of $86.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The company has a market cap of $14.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.24.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.01. Masco had a return on equity of 838.32% and a net margin of 10.50%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.83 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Masco Co. will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. This is a boost from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Masco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Masco from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $89.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Masco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Masco from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Masco from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Masco currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.32.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Masco news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 60,267 shares in the company, valued at $4,601,988.12. This trade represents a 26.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.78, for a total transaction of $225,317.42. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 33,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,370,678.06. This trade represents a 8.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.