Masco Co. (MAS) To Go Ex-Dividend on May 23rd

Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) declared a quarterly dividend on Monday, May 12th, Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of 0.31 per share by the construction company on Monday, June 9th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd.

Masco has increased its dividend payment by an average of 18.1% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 12 consecutive years. Masco has a dividend payout ratio of 30.7% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Masco to earn $4.81 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.24 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 25.8%.

Masco Stock Down 1.5%

Masco stock opened at $68.09 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.15. Masco has a fifty-two week low of $56.55 and a fifty-two week high of $86.70. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $65.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $73.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.11, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.23.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $0.87 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $1.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. Masco had a return on equity of 838.32% and a net margin of 10.50%. The company’s revenue was down 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.93 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Masco will post 4.34 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Zelman & Associates raised Masco to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Masco from $64.00 to $62.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Masco in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a “hold” rating and a $71.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 target price (down previously from $91.00) on shares of Masco in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Masco from $74.00 to $62.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Masco currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $73.10.

Insider Activity at Masco

In other Masco news, CEO Keith J. Allman sold 21,723 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.36, for a total transaction of $1,658,768.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 60,267 shares in the company, valued at $4,601,988.12. This represents a 26.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Renee Straber sold 3,139 shares of Masco stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.78, for a total value of $225,317.42. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 33,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,370,678.06. This trade represents a 8.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.