Matson, Inc. $MATX Shares Sold by Northern Trust Corp

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp has decreased its holdings in Matson, Inc. by 1.7%, selling 8,438 shares and holding approximately $61 million worth of the company's stock.
• Matson, Inc. has declared an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.36 per share, up from the previous $0.34, effective September 4th.
• The company recently reported a Q2 EPS of $2.92, surpassing analyst estimates, but revenues saw a 2% decline year-over-year.

Northern Trust Corp reduced its position in Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX - Free Report) by 1.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 475,994 shares of the shipping company's stock after selling 8,438 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned about 1.46% of Matson worth $61,008,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MATX. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of Matson in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Matson in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Matson by 30.4% in 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 during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Matson by 676.8% in 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 during the period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Matson by 112.2% in 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 during the period. 84.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Matson Price Performance

Shares of Matson stock traded down $1.37 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $104.08. 347,450 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 335,282. Matson, Inc. has a 1 year low of $91.75 and a 1 year high of $169.12. The company has a market capitalization of $3.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.04 and a beta of 1.21. The business has a fifty day moving average of $108.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $114.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Matson (NYSE:MATX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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. Matson had a net margin of 14.26% and a return on equity of 18.90%. The business had revenue of $830.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $727.30 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.31 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Matson, Inc. will post 13.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 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 currently 9.74%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stephens decreased their target price on shares of Matson from $175.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Matson from $160.00 to $130.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Matson in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Matson from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $131.67.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Christopher A. Scott sold 1,044 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.94, for a total transaction of $114,777.36. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 13,441 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,477,703.54. This represents a 7.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.05% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.