Trexquant Investment LP Sells 55,071 Shares of Matson, Inc. $MATX

Key Points

• Trexquant Investment LP sold 55,071 shares of Matson, Inc., reducing its stake by 75.3%, leaving it with only 18,086 shares valued at approximately $2.3 million.
• Matson reported an earnings surprise this quarter, with an EPS of $2.92, beating the consensus estimate by $0.74, although revenue decreased by 2% year-over-year.
• The company announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.36 per share, reflecting confidence in its financial stability with a low payout ratio of 9.74%.

Trexquant Investment LP decreased its position in Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX - Free Report) by 75.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 18,086 shares of the shipping company's stock after selling 55,071 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP owned approximately 0.06% of Matson worth $2,318,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on MATX. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Matson in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Matson from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $131.67.

Insider Activity at Matson

In other news, SVP Christopher A. Scott sold 1,044 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.05% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Matson Price Performance

NYSE MATX opened at $101.72 on Thursday. Matson, Inc. has a 52 week low of $91.75 and a 52 week high of $169.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.88 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $108.29 and a 200-day moving average price of $114.42.

Matson (NYSE:MATX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The shipping company reported $2.92 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.18 by $0.74. Matson had a net margin of 14.26% and a return on equity of 18.90%. The firm 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 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Matson, Inc. will post 13.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Matson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 7th will be given a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 7th. This is an increase from Matson's previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. Matson's payout ratio is currently 9.74%.

Matson 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.

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