SG Americas Securities LLC Sells 14,115 Shares of Matson, Inc. $MATX

Key Points

• SG Americas Securities LLC trimmed its stake in Matson (NYSE:MATX) by 70.8%, selling 14,115 shares in Q4 and leaving the firm with 5,834 shares worth about $721,000 per its SEC filing.
• Matson beat expectations with $4.60 EPS versus a $3.69 consensus and reported $851.9M in revenue (down 4.3% YoY but slightly above estimates), while analysts' consensus is an average "Hold" with a $156.25 target.
• Insider selling was significant last quarter—executives sold a total of 42,550 shares worth roughly $7.03 million, including transactions by VP Kevin L. Stuck and EVP John P. Lauer that materially reduced their holdings.

SG Americas Securities LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX - Free Report) by 70.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,834 shares of the shipping company's stock after selling 14,115 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC's holdings in Matson were worth $721,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Breakwater Capital Group bought a new stake in shares of Matson during the 4th quarter valued at $247,000. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL lifted its position in shares of Matson by 2,944.7% during the 3rd quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 57,850 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $5,703,000 after acquiring an additional 55,950 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Matson by 131.9% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 844 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $83,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares during the period. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Matson during the 3rd quarter valued at $342,000. Finally, Verition Fund Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Matson by 93.6% during the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 9,074 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $895,000 after acquiring an additional 4,388 shares during the period. 84.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Matson Price Performance

Shares of MATX stock opened at $171.45 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. Matson, Inc. has a twelve month low of $86.97 and a twelve month high of $177.51. The company has a market cap of $5.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.30 and a beta of 1.33. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $162.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $132.07.

Matson (NYSE:MATX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The shipping company reported $4.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.69 by $0.91. Matson had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 13.30%.The business had revenue of $851.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $847.30 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.80 EPS. Matson's revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Matson, Inc. will post 13.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Matson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 5th were given a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 5th. Matson's dividend payout ratio is currently 10.33%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Matson in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Matson from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, March 15th. Wolfe Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $167.00 target price on shares of Matson in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Stephens upped their target price on Matson from $190.00 to $213.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $156.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at Matson

In related news, VP Kevin L. Stuck sold 2,524 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.08, for a total transaction of $421,709.92. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 2,331 shares in the company, valued at $389,463.48. This represents a 51.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP John P. Lauer sold 8,603 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.13, for a total value of $1,429,216.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 23,738 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,943,593.94. This represents a 26.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 42,550 shares of company stock worth $7,034,602 over the last quarter. 2.51% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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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