Park Avenue Securities LLC Reduces Holdings in Masco Corporation $MAS

Key Points

• Park Avenue Securities LLC reduced its stake in Masco Corporation by 11.2% in the second quarter, owning 35,804 shares after selling 4,538 shares.
• Masco reported $1.30 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations by $0.22, with a revenue of $2.05 billion.
• The company declared a $0.31 per share quarterly dividend, with a 1.7% dividend yield, following reports of strong earnings growth and market confidence.

Park Avenue Securities LLC cut its stake in Masco Corporation (NYSE:MAS - Free Report) by 11.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 35,804 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 4,538 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC's holdings in Masco were worth $2,304,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Masco by 9.6% in the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,216 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $143,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC increased its position in Masco by 16.0% during the second quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 163,765 shares of the construction company's stock worth $10,540,000 after buying an additional 22,556 shares during the period. CX Institutional lifted its stake in Masco by 9.5% in the second quarter. CX Institutional now owns 5,303 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $341,000 after buying an additional 461 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in shares of Masco by 16.0% in the second quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 3,449 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $222,000 after acquiring an additional 476 shares during the period. Finally, Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of Masco in the second quarter valued at approximately $149,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.91% of the company's stock.

Masco Price Performance

Masco stock opened at $71.54 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $14.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.19. Masco Corporation has a one year low of $56.55 and a one year high of $86.70. The business has a fifty day moving average of $71.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $66.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 19.63, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.82.

Masco (NYSE:MAS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The construction company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.22. Masco had a net margin of 10.51% and a return on equity of 1,519.31%. The business had revenue of $2.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.20 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. Masco has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.900-4.100 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Masco Corporation will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Masco Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th were paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 8th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Masco's payout ratio is 32.89%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Masco from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Masco from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, September 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Masco in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Oppenheimer set a $79.00 price objective on Masco and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Masco from $65.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $74.60.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Masco news, insider Jai Shah sold 82,910 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.04, for a total value of $6,304,476.40. Following the sale, the insider owned 39,638 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,014,073.52. This represents a 67.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Heath M. Eisman sold 2,431 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.62, for a total transaction of $181,401.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 12,036 shares in the company, valued at $898,126.32. This represents a 16.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

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.

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