Hsbc Holdings PLC Purchases 6,021 Shares of Matson, Inc. $MATX

Key Points

• Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its stake in Matson, Inc. by 53.8%, purchasing an additional 6,021 shares, bringing its total holdings to 17,211 shares valued at approximately $2.2 million.
• Several institutional investors raised or established positions in Matson, leading to a total institutional ownership of 84.76%.
• Matson recently announced a dividend increase to $0.36 per share, up from $0.34, marking a yield of 1.4% for shareholders of record.

Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its position in shares of Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX - Free Report) by 53.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 17,211 shares of the shipping company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,021 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned 0.05% of Matson worth $2,202,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in Matson during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in Matson during the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in Matson by 30.4% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 764 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $98,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in Matson by 676.8% during the 1st quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 769 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $99,000 after purchasing an additional 670 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in Matson by 112.2% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 783 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $100,000 after purchasing an additional 414 shares in the last quarter. 84.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Matson Stock Performance

Shares of MATX traded down $1.77 on Tuesday, reaching $102.28. The company's stock had a trading volume of 369,356 shares, compared to its average volume of 315,622. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.92 and a beta of 1.21. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $108.43 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $114.51. Matson, Inc. has a 12-month low of $91.75 and a 12-month high of $169.12.

Matson (NYSE:MATX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The shipping company reported $2.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.74. The company had revenue of $830.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $727.30 million. Matson had a net margin of 14.26% and a return on equity of 18.90%. The firm's revenue was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.31 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Matson, Inc. will post 13.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Matson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 7th will be issued a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 7th. This is a positive change from Matson's previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Matson's payout ratio is 9.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MATX. Stephens dropped their price target on shares of Matson from $175.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of Matson from $160.00 to $130.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Matson from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Matson in a report on Friday, August 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $131.67.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Christopher A. Scott sold 1,044 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.94, for a total value of $114,777.36. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 13,441 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,477,703.54. This trade represents a 7.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 2.05% of the company's stock.

Matson Company 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.