Franklin Resources Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Posted by Defense World Staff on Jun 3rd, 2023

Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS – Get Rating) by 4.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 102,597 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 4,740 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Masco were worth $4,788,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Masco by 13.8% during the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 706,387 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $32,967,000 after acquiring an additional 85,846 shares during the last quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in Masco by 12.4% in the fourth quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 84,056 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,925,000 after buying an additional 9,285 shares during the period. Corrado Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Masco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $111,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp grew its stake in Masco by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 531,367 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $24,799,000 after buying an additional 10,131 shares during the period. Finally, MQS Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Masco in the fourth quarter worth $914,000. 91.50% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Masco Stock Performance

NYSE MAS opened at $51.47 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.59 billion, a PE ratio of 14.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 1.19. Masco Co. has a one year low of $42.33 and a one year high of $57.35. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $50.67 and a 200-day simple moving average of $50.75.

Masco (NYSE:MAS – Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 26th. The construction company reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $1.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.91 billion. Masco had a negative return on equity of 237.83% and a net margin of 9.65%. The business’s revenue was down 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.95 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Masco Co. will post 3.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Masco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.285 per share. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 25th. Masco’s payout ratio is 31.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MAS. KeyCorp lowered their price target on Masco from $66.00 to $62.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 10th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 11th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Masco from $62.00 to $64.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 27th. Credit Suisse Group boosted their price objective on shares of Masco from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised Masco from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $49.00 to $57.00 in a research report on Friday, February 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Masco presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $58.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO John G. Sznewajs sold 68,750 shares of Masco stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.09, for a total transaction of $3,718,687.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 187,784 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,157,236.56. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CFO John G. Sznewajs sold 20,361 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.00, for a total value of $1,099,494.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 187,784 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,140,336. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO John G. Sznewajs sold 68,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.09, for a total transaction of $3,718,687.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 187,784 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,157,236.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Masco

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Masco Corp. engages in the business of designing, manufacturing, and distribution of branded home improvement and building products. It operates under the Plumbing Products and Decorative Architectural Products segments. The Plumbing Products segment includes faucets, showerheads, handheld showers, valves, bath hardware and accessories, bathing units, shower bases and enclosures, shower drains, steam shower systems, sinks, kitchen accessories, and toilets.