Masco Co. Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.29 (NYSE:MAS)

Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, May 10th, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Friday, May 24th will be given a dividend of 0.29 per share by the construction company on Monday, June 10th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 23rd.

Masco has raised its dividend by an average of 27.9% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 11 years. Masco has a payout ratio of 25.4% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Masco to earn $4.54 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.16 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 25.6%.

Masco Trading Down 2.1 %

Shares of Masco stock traded down $1.52 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $70.79. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,342,069 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,011,120. The company has a market capitalization of $15.59 billion, a PE ratio of 17.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 18.76, a current ratio of 1.74 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $74.00 and a 200 day moving average of $68.59. Masco has a 12 month low of $47.66 and a 12 month high of $78.94.

Masco (NYSE:MAS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.94 billion. Masco had a net margin of 11.60% and a return on equity of 865.37%. The firm's revenue was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.87 EPS. Analysts predict that Masco will post 4.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Masco

In other Masco news, VP Richard Allan Marshall sold 5,000 shares of Masco stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.05, for a total transaction of $385,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 10,465 shares of the company's stock, valued at $806,328.25. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, VP Richard Allan Marshall sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.05, for a total value of $385,250.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 10,465 shares of the company's stock, valued at $806,328.25. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Kenneth G. Cole sold 36,210 shares of Masco stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.65, for a total value of $2,703,076.50. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 58,885 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,395,765.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 83,762 shares of company stock worth $6,337,597. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on MAS shares. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Masco from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Masco from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Loop Capital decreased their target price on shares of Masco from $79.00 to $76.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of Masco in a research report on Friday, January 19th. They set a "market perform" rating on the stock. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Masco from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Masco has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $72.15.

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.