Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Takes Position in Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX)

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has invested approximately $1.17 million in Matson, Inc., acquiring 9,113 shares of the shipping company.
• Matson recently announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.34 to $0.36 per share, representing an annualized yield of 1.3%.
• Analysts have mixed views on Matson, with a current average rating of "Hold" and a price target around $131.67.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 9,113 shares of the shipping company's stock, valued at approximately $1,168,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in shares of Matson by 12.3% in the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 2,552 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $344,000 after purchasing an additional 280 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Matson by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 17,133 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $2,310,000 after buying an additional 1,084 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Matson by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 323,124 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $43,570,000 after purchasing an additional 36,156 shares during the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group raised its holdings in shares of Matson by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 5,260 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $713,000 after purchasing an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new position in Matson in the 4th quarter worth $2,705,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.76% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on MATX. Wall Street Zen lowered Matson from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Matson from $160.00 to $130.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Matson in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Stephens cut their target price on Matson from $175.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $131.67.

Matson Stock Down 2.1%

NYSE:MATX traded down $2.32 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $107.76. 196,839 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 412,822. Matson, Inc. has a one year low of $91.75 and a one year high of $169.12. The company has a market cap of $3.43 billion, a PE ratio of 7.30 and a beta of 1.22. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $111.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $118.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

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

Matson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 7th. This is a positive change from Matson's previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Matson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 9.20%.

About Matson

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.