New York State Teachers Retirement System Sells 7,441 Shares of Matson, Inc. $MATX

Key Points

• New York State Teachers Retirement System reduced its Matson stake by 16.1% in the first quarter, selling 7,441 shares and leaving it with 38,678 shares valued at about $6.34 million.
• Matson reported better-than-expected earnings for the latest quarter, with EPS of $1.85 versus analysts’ estimate of $1.65, though revenue came in below expectations and was down 3.1% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.38 per share from $0.36, while analysts currently rate the stock a moderate buy with an average price target of $181.25.

New York State Teachers Retirement System trimmed its holdings in shares of Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX - Free Report) by 16.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,678 shares of the shipping company's stock after selling 7,441 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned 0.13% of Matson worth $6,341,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MATX. Danske Bank A S purchased a new stake in Matson during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. SouthState Bank Corp purchased a new position in shares of Matson in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Matson during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Matson by 57.3% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 258 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Torren Management LLC purchased a new stake in Matson during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.76% of the company's stock.

Matson Stock Down 2.9%

NYSE:MATX opened at $198.60 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $6.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.59 and a beta of 1.28. Matson, Inc. has a twelve month low of $86.97 and a twelve month high of $207.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $188.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $166.74.

Matson (NYSE:MATX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The shipping company reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.20. Matson had a net margin of 12.92% and a return on equity of 15.90%. The firm had revenue of $757.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $777.55 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.18 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Matson, Inc. will post 13.96 EPS for the current year.

Matson Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. This is a boost from Matson's previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 6th. Matson's payout ratio is presently 10.58%.

Insider Activity

In other Matson news, SVP Christopher A. Scott sold 1,520 shares of Matson stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.05, for a total transaction of $275,196.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 9,708 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,757,633.40. The trade was a 13.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Kuuhaku T. Park sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.19, for a total value of $450,475.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 10,984 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,979,206.96. This represents a 18.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 23,963 shares of company stock valued at $4,349,268. Insiders own 2.51% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on MATX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Matson in a research note on Monday, April 27th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $230.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Matson from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, March 15th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Matson in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Matson to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Matson has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $181.25.

Matson Profile

Matson, Inc NYSE: MATX is a U.S.-based provider of ocean transportation and supply chain logistics services with a focus on Pacific trade lanes. The company operates a fleet of container ships that regularly service Hawaii, Alaska, Guam, Micronesia and other Pacific islands, as well as mainland U.S. ports. Matson's ocean transportation segment offers scheduled liner services, expedited shipping options and specialized project cargo handling for industries ranging from retail to heavy machinery.

In addition to its core liner operations, Matson offers ocean transportation services between Asia and the U.S.

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