Affinity Investment Advisors LLC has decreased its stake in Masco Co. by 67.1% in the fourth quarter, according to documents filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor sold 15,499 shares during this period, leaving them with a total of 7,607 shares of the construction company’s stock. At the end of the period, Affinity Investment Advisors LLC estimates their holdings in Masco amounted to $355,000.
This move from Affinity Investment Advisors LLC is backed by a series of research reports that have been published on Masco in recent months. One such report comes from Royal Bank of Canada who raised Masco from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $49.00 to $57.00 in a research note on February 10th.
Another report comes from StockNews.com who have also upgraded Masco to a “buy” rating after previously holding it as a “hold”. Furthermore, Barclays lifted their price objective on Masco from $62.00 to $64.00 and Credit Suisse Group lifted their price objective on shares of Masco from $40.00 to $45.00 while maintaining an “underweight” rating.
Not all reports are so optimistic, however; KeyCorp recently decreased their target share price for Masco Co., dropping it from $66.00 to $62.00 and setting an “overweight” rating for the stock on Friday, February 10th.
Despite this fluctuation in ratings between companies, the average Bloomberg data reveals that analysts consider the current stock position as a “Moderate Buy”. Additionally, recent dividend payments have provided some stability for investors; The most recent quarterly dividend will be paid on March 13th and was given at a rate of .285 cents per share representing both positive change and conservative earnings percentage ratio with DPR currently at 31.93%.
Ultimately, it is unclear what the future holds for Masco Co. However, investors and analysts alike continue to watch the construction company’s stock closely while attempting to predict its performance.
Institutional Investors and Hedge Funds Take Notice of Masco’s Strong Q3 2022 Performance and Promising Future Growth Potential
Masco (NYSE:MAS) drew significant attention from institutional investors and hedge funds in the third quarter of 2022. Standard Family Office LLC bought a new position in Masco worth $53,000, while Tobam grew its stake in shares by 141.7% to this value during the same period. Similarly, Riverview Trust Co invested $56,000 into the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 224 shares in the last quarter of 2022. Neo Ivy Capital Management rounded off the third-quarter investment with $80,000, and Old North State Trust LLC followed shortly after with a $91,000 investment. In line with these investments come two sales relating to CEO Keith J. Allman who sold shares worth more than $4 million over two days of trading in February 2023.
Despite buying and selling activities within the firm’s shareholder base development-wise for Masco was noteworthy during this period. The earnings report for Q1 2023 announced an EPS of $0.87 which surpassed consensus estimates by $0.22. For instance, Masco posted revenue of $1.98 billion proving analysts wrong who projected revenue at $1.91 billion whilst showing notable net margin progression and negative return on equity continuation though sizable compared to Q1 2022 offsetting some optimism that could have otherwise resulted from better EPS values.
The company also delivered positive news regarding dividends declared—a quarterly dividend increment from last released results sets at $0.285 per share representing an annualized dividend yield of 2%. An update on stock market trends shows a P/E ratio currently at around 15 coupled with a strong P/E/G ratio indicating future growth potential based on trustworthy analysis methodologies.
Overall, as displayed by admirable investment methodology exhibited by both individual investors and institutional funds coupled with solid fundamental indicators amid industry-relevant developments observers anticipate continued growth prospects from this reliable construction company— leading followers to eye off a potentially rewarding long-term investment.