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 dated Thursday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.94, for a total transaction of $114,777.36. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 13,441 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,477,703.54. This trade represents a 7.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Matson Trading Up 1.7%

NYSE MATX traded up $1.87 on Wednesday, reaching $109.92. The company had a trading volume of 41,355 shares, compared to its average volume of 411,675. Matson, Inc. has a 52 week low of $91.75 and a 52 week high of $169.12. The stock's 50 day moving average is $110.68 and its 200-day moving average is $118.12. 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 stock has a market cap of $3.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.43 and a beta of 1.22.

Matson (NYSE:MATX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The shipping company reported $2.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.18 by $0.74. The company had revenue of $830.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $727.30 million. Matson had a return on equity of 18.90% and a net margin of 14.26%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.31 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Matson, Inc. will post 13.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Matson Increases Dividend

The company 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 is a positive change from Matson's previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 7th. Matson's payout ratio is 9.74%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Matson

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in Matson by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 2,552 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $344,000 after buying an additional 280 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Matson by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 17,133 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $2,310,000 after acquiring an additional 1,084 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Matson during the fourth quarter worth about $2,705,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its holdings in shares of Matson by 20.0% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 26,929 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $3,631,000 after purchasing an additional 4,490 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aviva PLC bought a new position in shares of Matson during the 4th quarter valued at about $541,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.76% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MATX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Matson from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Matson from $160.00 to $130.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Matson in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Stephens decreased their price target on Matson from $175.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $131.67.

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.