Insider Buying: Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX) Director Buys 2,752 Shares of Stock

Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX - Get Free Report) Director Bradley D. Tilden acquired 2,752 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $111.76 per share, with a total value of $307,563.52. Following the transaction, the director now owns 8,180 shares in the company, valued at approximately $914,196.80. The trade was a 50.70% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Matson Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of Matson stock traded down $0.78 during trading on Monday, reaching $112.08. 93,290 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 340,972. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Matson, Inc. has a twelve month low of $91.75 and a twelve month high of $169.12. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $109.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $130.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.34 and a beta of 1.30.

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

Matson Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 8th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.21%. Matson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.96%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Matson

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MATX. Strs Ohio acquired a new position in Matson in the first quarter valued at about $1,218,000. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Matson by 178.8% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 56,102 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $7,191,000 after acquiring an additional 35,980 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in Matson by 11.3% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 24,459 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $3,135,000 after acquiring an additional 2,492 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new position in Matson in the first quarter valued at about $279,000. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd grew its stake in Matson by 7.8% in the first quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 13,974 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $1,791,000 after acquiring an additional 1,014 shares during the period. 84.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MATX has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Matson from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Stephens dropped 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. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Matson from $160.00 to $130.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Matson from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Matson has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $138.33.

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.