QRG Capital Management Inc. Purchases 10,897 Shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 424,793 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 10,897 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.20% of Masco worth $30,827,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Masco during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Masco during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Masco during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Masco during the third quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Masco during the third quarter valued at about $43,000. Institutional investors own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on MAS shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Masco from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Masco from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Masco from $80.00 to $83.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Masco from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $96.00 to $89.00 in a report on Monday, December 16th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Masco currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.32.

Masco Trading Down 0.1 %

Masco stock opened at $76.01 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74. Masco Co. has a 52 week low of $63.81 and a 52 week high of $86.70. The company has a market capitalization of $16.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.25. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $76.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $78.82.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last released its 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 prior year, the business earned $0.83 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Masco Co. will post 4.34 EPS 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 issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This is an increase from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.63%. Masco’s payout ratio is 32.98%.

Masco 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.