Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC Takes Position in Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX)

Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC purchased a new stake in Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 258,806 shares of the shipping company's stock, valued at approximately $34,897,000. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC owned approximately 0.78% of Matson at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in Matson by 67.7% in the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 213 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new position in shares of Matson in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. IFP Advisors Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Matson during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of Matson by 16.3% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 586 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $79,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the period. Finally, U S Global Investors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Matson during the fourth quarter worth approximately $111,000. 84.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Matson

In other news, EVP John P. Lauer sold 7,985 shares of Matson stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.73, for a total transaction of $1,075,819.05. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 25,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,394,118.16. The trade was a 24.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Laura L. Rascon sold 1,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.19, for a total value of $200,923.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 14,712 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,738,811.28. The trade was a 10.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,682 shares of company stock valued at $1,550,551 over the last three months. 2.05% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Matson Stock Performance

Shares of MATX traded down $0.66 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $115.88. The company had a trading volume of 570,201 shares, compared to its average volume of 337,780. The business has a fifty day moving average of $113.50 and a 200-day moving average of $133.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The firm has a market cap of $3.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.64 and a beta of 1.30. Matson, Inc. has a 12 month low of $91.75 and a 12 month high of $169.12.

Matson (NYSE:MATX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The shipping company reported $2.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.34 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $782.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $818.07 million. Matson had a return on equity of 16.89% and a net margin of 12.37%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.04 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Matson, Inc. will post 13.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Matson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 8th will be given a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 8th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.17%. Matson's dividend payout ratio is 8.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on MATX. StockNews.com cut Matson from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Stephens decreased 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. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Matson from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Matson from $160.00 to $130.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Matson currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $138.33.

Matson Company 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.