Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec Sells 42,761 Shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec reduced its stake in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS - Free Report) by 21.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 158,034 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 42,761 shares during the period. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec owned about 0.07% of Masco worth $11,469,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MAS. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Masco by 20.6% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 331,883 shares of the construction company's stock worth $28,147,000 after buying an additional 56,626 shares during the last quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Masco by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 219,120 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $17,135,000 after acquiring an additional 13,568 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in Masco by 69.1% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,544 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $112,000 after purchasing an additional 631 shares during the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Masco by 5,050.0% in the fourth quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,300 shares of the construction company's stock worth $747,000 after purchasing an additional 10,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empower Advisory Group LLC raised its position in shares of Masco by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,016,079 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $73,737,000 after purchasing an additional 20,129 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.91% of the company's stock.

Masco Stock Performance

Shares of MAS stock traded up $0.42 on Friday, reaching $62.13. The stock had a trading volume of 1,244,428 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,750,270. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.75. Masco Co. has a 1 year low of $56.55 and a 1 year high of $86.70. The stock has a market cap of $13.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $65.61 and a 200 day simple moving average of $73.53.

Masco (NYSE:MAS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.92 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $1.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.84 billion. Masco had a net margin of 10.50% and a return on equity of 838.32%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.93 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Masco Co. will post 4.34 EPS for the current year.

Masco Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.00%. This is a positive change from Masco's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. Masco's dividend payout ratio is 33.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Masco news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.36, for a total transaction of $1,658,768.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 60,267 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,601,988.12. This trade represents a 26.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.78, for a total value of $225,317.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 33,027 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,370,678.06. This trade represents a 8.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MAS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Masco from $82.00 to $65.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Zelman & Associates raised Masco to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Masco in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a "hold" rating and a $71.00 target price for the company. Loop Capital set a $62.00 price target on shares of Masco and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of Masco from $64.00 to $62.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Masco has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $73.10.

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.