382,958 Masco Corporation $MAS Shares Sold by Pictet Asset Management Holding SA

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA trimmed its stake in shares of Masco Corporation (NYSE:MAS - Free Report) by 22.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,332,044 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 382,958 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned about 0.68% of Masco worth $89,785,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Masco in the second quarter valued at about $1,278,943,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of Masco during the 2nd quarter worth about $178,424,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Masco in the 2nd quarter valued at about $156,668,000. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in Masco in the 2nd quarter valued at about $149,673,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in Masco by 828.7% in the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,071,592 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $64,692,000 after acquiring an additional 956,204 shares during the period. 93.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Masco

In other news, VP Kenneth Cole sold 34,470 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.64, for a total transaction of $2,779,660.80. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 39,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,201,408. This trade represents a 46.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

Masco Trading Up 4.4%

Shares of Masco stock opened at $85.87 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 109.07, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.83. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $72.56 and a 200-day moving average of $71.30. Masco Corporation has a 52-week low of $58.16 and a 52-week high of $87.86. The stock has a market cap of $16.55 billion, a PE ratio of 18.59, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.21.

Masco (NYSE:MAS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The construction company reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.17. Masco had a net margin of 12.07% and a negative return on equity of 1,807.69%. The business had revenue of $1.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.93 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.97 earnings per share. Masco's revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Masco Corporation will post 4.72 EPS for the current year.

Masco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 6th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 6th. Masco's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MAS has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Masco from $79.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Masco from $69.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Zacks Research downgraded Masco from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Citigroup lowered their target price on Masco from $79.00 to $77.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $74.00 price target on Masco in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $81.82.

Masco Company Profile

Masco Corporation is a manufacturer of home improvement and building products, serving residential construction, repair and remodeling markets. Its products are sold primarily in North America and Europe, as well as in other markets around the world.

The company's Plumbing Products include faucets, showering and bathing products, and related fixtures and accessories. Its brands include Delta Faucet, Brizo, Peerless and hansgrohe. Masco also makes decorative architectural products, including paints and coatings sold under the BEHR and KILZ brands.

Founded in 1929 by Alex Manoogian as Masco Screw Products Company, the business grew from a small manufacturing operation into a diversified home-products company.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.