Texas Permanent School Fund Corp Trims Stock Position in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Texas Permanent School Fund Corp reduced its stake in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 20.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 36,335 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 9,092 shares during the quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp’s holdings in Masco were worth $2,422,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MAS. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Masco during the fourth quarter worth approximately $122,144,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Masco during the 2nd quarter worth $82,363,000. Confluence Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Masco in the first quarter valued at $78,181,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Masco by 66.5% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,823,934 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $121,581,000 after buying an additional 728,690 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Masco by 2.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,300,591 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,074,591,000 after buying an additional 721,117 shares during the period. 93.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Masco

In related news, VP Kenneth G. Cole sold 37,814 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.32, for a total transaction of $2,961,592.48. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 36,980 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,896,273.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Masco Stock Up 1.0 %

MAS opened at $81.04 on Tuesday. Masco Co. has a 12 month low of $47.66 and a 12 month high of $81.91. The stock has a market cap of $17.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.24. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $75.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $72.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.18, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 1.12.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The construction company reported $1.20 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $2.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.10 billion. Masco had a net margin of 11.59% and a return on equity of 602.39%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.19 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Masco Co. will post 4.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Masco Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were given a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. Masco’s payout ratio is currently 28.43%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MAS. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Masco from $81.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Citigroup dropped their target price on Masco from $73.00 to $66.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Masco from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Masco from $79.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Masco from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $77.58.

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.