Masco (NYSE:MAS) Upgraded to “Buy” by StockNews.com

Masco (NYSE:MAS) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Masco from $75.00 to $74.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Masco from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Masco from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Masco from $65.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Finally, Loop Capital dropped their price target on Masco from $79.00 to $76.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.07.

Masco Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MAS traded up $0.13 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $69.87. 2,796,866 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,082,240. Masco has a 1 year low of $47.66 and a 1 year high of $78.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 30.05, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.68. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $75.23 and a 200 day moving average of $66.76.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.06. Masco had a net margin of 11.40% and a return on equity of 3,111.50%. The firm had revenue of $1.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.94 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.87 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Masco will post 4.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jai Shah sold 42,552 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.36, for a total value of $3,249,270.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,830 shares in the company, valued at $1,208,778.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Jai Shah sold 42,552 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.36, for a total value of $3,249,270.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,830 shares in the company, valued at $1,208,778.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Richard Allan Marshall sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.05, for a total value of $385,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 10,465 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $806,328.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 83,762 shares of company stock worth $6,337,597 over the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Masco

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Masco by 35.3% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 59,792 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,005,000 after purchasing an additional 15,591 shares during the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Masco by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 229,507 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $15,372,000 after purchasing an additional 18,140 shares during the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Masco by 264.5% in the fourth quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 18,219 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,220,000 after acquiring an additional 13,221 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in shares of Masco by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 344,141 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $23,051,000 after acquiring an additional 21,165 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Masco in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,606,000. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.