Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Lowers Holdings in Masco Corporation $MAS

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. trimmed its position in Masco Corporation (NYSE:MAS) by 76.7% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 138,759 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 455,917 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Masco were worth $8,806,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp increased its stake in Masco by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,175,075 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $716,224,000 after acquiring an additional 367,937 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners boosted its position in shares of Masco by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 5,850,170 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $411,832,000 after acquiring an additional 58,609 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Masco by 32.3% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 5,085,602 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $357,976,000 after purchasing an additional 1,240,322 shares in the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Masco by 48.6% in the second quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 5,001,386 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $321,889,000 after purchasing an additional 1,635,746 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of Masco by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 4,371,864 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $278,619,000 after purchasing an additional 267,012 shares during the last quarter. 93.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Masco news, CAO Heath M. Eisman sold 747 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.92, for a total value of $53,724.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 12,510 shares in the company, valued at approximately $899,719.20. The trade was a 5.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on MAS shares. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Masco from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $77.00 price target on shares of Masco in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Robert W. Baird set a $82.00 price objective on shares of Masco in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $71.00 target price (down from $76.00) on shares of Masco in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Masco from $78.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Masco has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.94.

Masco Price Performance

Shares of Masco stock opened at $59.51 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $68.11 and a 200-day moving average of $67.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 38.75, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.81. Masco Corporation has a 52-week low of $56.55 and a 52-week high of $79.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.27.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The construction company reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.04. Masco had a return on equity of 856.70% and a net margin of 10.71%.The firm had revenue of $1.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.82 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.89 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Masco has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.100-4.300 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Masco Corporation will post 4.34 EPS for the current year.

Masco announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, February 10th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the construction company to buy up to 13.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Masco Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 20th were paid a $0.32 dividend. This is an increase from Masco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 20th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. Masco’s payout ratio is presently 33.25%.

Masco Company Profile

Masco Corporation is a global leader in the design, manufacture and distribution of branded home improvement and building products. Founded in 1929 and headquartered in Livonia, Michigan, the company has evolved from a small door‐bell manufacturer into a diversified enterprise serving both residential and commercial markets. Over its history, Masco has grown through a combination of organic innovation and strategic acquisitions, building a portfolio of well-recognized brands.

The company’s product offerings are organized into two primary segments.