Masco (NYSE:MAS) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at Vertical Research

Key Points

• Vertical Research has initiated coverage of Masco (NYSE: MAS) with a "hold" rating, while other analysts have varying recommendations including "overweight" and "strong buy".
• Masco reported $1.30 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding estimates of $1.08, despite a 1.9% decline in year-over-year revenue.
• Insider sales include significant transactions by executives, with one selling over 82,000 shares, leading to a 67.66% decrease in ownership for that individual.

Stock analysts at Vertical Research assumed coverage on shares of Masco (NYSE:MAS - Get Free Report) in a note issued to investors on Monday. The firm set a "hold" rating on the construction company's stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Barclays lifted their price objective on Masco from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Oppenheimer set a $79.00 target price on Masco and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Loop Capital restated a "hold" rating and set a $73.00 price objective (up from $62.00) on shares of Masco in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Robert W. Baird downgraded Masco from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $70.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Masco from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, September 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and thirteen have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Masco currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $74.60.

Masco Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of Masco stock traded up $0.87 on Monday, hitting $68.74. 818,612 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,142,746. Masco has a one year low of $56.55 and a one year high of $85.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 19.63, a current ratio of 1.82 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.39 billion, a PE ratio of 18.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.18. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $71.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $66.71.

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

Insider Activity at Masco

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 transaction of $6,304,476.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 39,638 shares in the company, valued at $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 available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Heath M. Eisman sold 2,431 shares of Masco stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.62, for a total value of $181,401.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 12,036 shares in the company, valued at approximately $898,126.32. The trade was a 16.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Masco

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Masco by 10.5% during the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 23,008 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,580,000 after buying an additional 2,184 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Masco by 2.5% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 11,007 shares of the construction company's stock worth $769,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Masco by 11.0% in the first quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 86,131 shares of the construction company's stock worth $5,990,000 after purchasing an additional 8,508 shares during the last quarter. Entropy Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of Masco in the first quarter worth $3,946,000. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its holdings in Masco by 1.0% in the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 24,832 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,726,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares during the period. 93.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Masco

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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