Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX) Holdings Increased by Northern Trust Corp

Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX - Free Report) by 14.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 484,432 shares of the shipping company's stock after purchasing an additional 61,204 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned about 1.46% of Matson worth $65,321,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MATX. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Matson by 67.7% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 213 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in Matson during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. IFP Advisors Inc purchased a new position in Matson during the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Matson by 16.3% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 586 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Finally, U S Global Investors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Matson during the 4th quarter valued at $111,000. 84.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Matson Stock Down 3.1 %

Matson stock traded down $3.07 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $96.19. 606,620 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 323,691. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13. Matson, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $91.75 and a fifty-two week high of $169.12. The company's fifty day moving average price is $114.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $134.33. The company has a market cap of $3.16 billion, a PE ratio of 8.00 and a beta of 1.30.

Matson (NYSE:MATX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $782.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $818.07 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.04 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Matson, Inc. will post 13.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Matson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 8th will be issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 8th. Matson's dividend payout ratio is currently 8.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Matson

In related news, SVP Richard S. Kinney sold 1,997 shares of Matson stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.11, for a total value of $273,808.67. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 8,425 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,155,151.75. The trade was a 19.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP John P. Lauer sold 7,985 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was 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 directly owns 25,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,394,118.16. This represents a 24.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.05% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Stephens reduced their target price on Matson from $175.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Matson from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Matson from $160.00 to $130.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $125.00 price objective on shares of Matson in a research report on Tuesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $135.00.

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.