Impax Asset Management Group plc Cuts Holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Impax Asset Management Group plc reduced its holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 9.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,294,921 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 247,340 shares during the quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc’s holdings in Masco were worth $166,542,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MAS. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Masco by 13,069.3% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 29,631 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,487,000 after purchasing an additional 29,406 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Masco during the third quarter worth about $330,000. IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its holdings in Masco by 3.1% in the third quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 48,426 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $4,065,000 after buying an additional 1,478 shares in the last quarter. Dakota Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Masco during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $206,000. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Masco by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 5,997 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $503,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares during the period. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Masco Stock Down 1.9 %

MAS opened at $74.82 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.25. Masco Co. has a 12 month low of $63.81 and a 12 month 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 business has a 50-day moving average of $76.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $78.80.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $0.89 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 quarter last year, the business earned $0.83 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect 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 will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a $0.31 dividend. This is a positive change from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Masco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Masco from $80.00 to $83.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $96.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Masco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Masco from $95.00 to $94.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Masco from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.32.

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.