Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) Shares Sold by MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd.

MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. reduced its position in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS - Free Report) by 68.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,174 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 49,659 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd.'s holdings in Masco were worth $1,682,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MAS. MJP Associates Inc. ADV acquired a new stake in Masco in the fourth quarter valued at $298,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Masco by 10.8% during the 4th quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 329,254 shares of the construction company's stock worth $23,894,000 after purchasing an additional 32,212 shares in the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Masco by 105.9% during the 4th quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 15,882 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,153,000 after purchasing an additional 8,168 shares in the last quarter. KKM Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Masco by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. KKM Financial LLC now owns 35,693 shares of the construction company's stock worth $2,590,000 after purchasing an additional 1,718 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gotham Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Masco by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 302,128 shares of the construction company's stock worth $21,925,000 after purchasing an additional 12,372 shares in the last quarter. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Masco from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of Masco in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a "hold" rating and a $71.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $80.00 target price (down from $91.00) on shares of Masco in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Masco from $65.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Masco from $64.00 to $62.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Masco presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $73.63.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of Masco stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.78, for a total transaction of $225,317.42. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 33,027 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,370,678.06. The trade was a 8.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Masco Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of MAS stock traded down $0.71 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $62.78. The company had a trading volume of 837,766 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,799,571. 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 twelve month low of $56.55 and a twelve month high of $86.70. The company has a market capitalization of $13.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.23. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $63.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $72.03.

Masco (NYSE:MAS - Get Free Report) last posted its 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). Masco had a net margin of 10.50% and a return on equity of 838.32%. The company had revenue of $1.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.93 EPS. Masco's quarterly revenue was down 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Masco Co. will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Masco Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 9th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. Masco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.88%.

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.