Allianz Asset Management GmbH Cuts Stake in Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX)

Allianz Asset Management GmbH lowered its position in shares of Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX - Free Report) by 34.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 208,734 shares of the shipping company's stock after selling 108,771 shares during the quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH owned 0.64% of Matson worth $26,753,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Matson in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,016,000. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Matson in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,897,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Matson by 73.9% during the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 416,473 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $56,157,000 after acquiring an additional 177,000 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Matson by 14,218.7% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 175,977 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $22,555,000 after acquiring an additional 174,748 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Matson in the fourth quarter valued at $20,204,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.76% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Matson

In other news, Director Bradley D. Tilden acquired 2,752 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 29th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $111.76 per share, with a total value of $307,563.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 8,180 shares in the company, valued at approximately $914,196.80. This represents a 50.70% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Leonard P. Isotoff sold 500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.47, for a total transaction of $55,735.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 5,644 shares in the company, valued at $629,136.68. The trade was a 8.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.05% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on MATX shares. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Matson from $160.00 to $130.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Matson from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Stephens reduced their price target on shares of Matson from $175.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered Matson from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $135.00 to $115.00 in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $131.67.

Matson Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MATX traded up $0.68 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $109.47. 268,307 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 364,769. Matson, Inc. has a twelve month low of $91.75 and a twelve month high of $169.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $111.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $120.66. The stock has a market cap of $3.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.21 and a beta of 1.28.

Matson (NYSE:MATX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The shipping company reported $2.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.34 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $782.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $818.07 million. Matson had a return on equity of 20.02% and a net margin of 14.72%. The business's revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.04 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Matson, Inc. will post 13.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Matson Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 7th will be given a $0.36 dividend. This is an increase from Matson's previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 7th. Matson's dividend payout ratio is currently 8.96%.

Matson Profile

Matson, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of ocean transportation and logistics services. It operates through two segments, Ocean Transportation and Logistics. The Ocean Transportation segment offers ocean freight transportation services to the domestic non-contiguous economies of Hawaii, Japan, Alaska, and Guam, as well as to other island economies in Micronesia.