Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX) SVP Christopher A. Scott Sells 1,044 Shares

Key Points

• Matson, Inc. SVP Christopher A. Scott sold 1,044 shares at an average price of $109.94, resulting in a total transaction value of $114,777.36, reducing his ownership by 7.21%.
• The company reported $2.92 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $2.18, despite a 2% year-over-year revenue decline.
• Matson announced a quarterly dividend of $0.36 per share, an increase from the previous $0.34, with an annualized yield of 1.3%.

Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX - Get Free Report) SVP Christopher A. Scott sold 1,044 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.94, for a total value of $114,777.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 13,441 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,477,703.54. The trade was a 7.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Matson Stock Performance

Matson stock traded down $2.70 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $107.38. 413,308 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 400,503. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $118.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.41 billion, a PE ratio of 7.26 and a beta of 1.22. Matson, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $91.75 and a fifty-two week high of $169.12.

Matson (NYSE:MATX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The shipping company reported $2.92 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.74. The business had revenue of $830.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $727.30 million. Matson had a net margin of 14.26% and a return on equity of 18.90%. The business's revenue was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.31 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Matson, Inc. will post 13.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Matson Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. 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 dividend payout ratio is currently 9.74%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Matson

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Matson by 67.7% during 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 in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in Matson in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Matson in the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in Matson by 67.1% during the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 254 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of Matson during the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 84.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on MATX shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Matson from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Matson in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Stephens dropped their price objective on shares of Matson from $175.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Matson from $160.00 to $130.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $131.67.

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.

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