Matson (NYSE:MATX) Hits New 12-Month Low - Should You Sell?

Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $97.91 and last traded at $97.98, with a volume of 46099 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $100.61.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on MATX shares. Stephens lifted their price objective on shares of Matson from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Matson from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th.

Matson Trading Down 3.8 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $3.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.87 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $126.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $137.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13.

Matson (NYSE:MATX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The shipping company reported $3.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.20 by $0.60. Matson had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 16.89%. The firm had revenue of $890.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $851.78 million. On average, research analysts forecast that Matson, Inc. will post 13.27 EPS for the current year.

Matson Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 6th were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 6th. Matson's payout ratio is 9.69%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Matson

In other news, EVP John P. Lauer sold 7,985 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.73, for a total value of $1,075,819.05. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,192 shares in the company, valued at $3,394,118.16. This represents a 24.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Richard S. Kinney sold 1,997 shares of Matson stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.11, for a total value of $273,808.67. Following the transaction, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.05% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Matson

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MATX. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Matson by 67.7% in the fourth 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 purchased a new position in shares of Matson during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Matson during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. IFP Advisors Inc acquired a new position in Matson in the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd lifted its position in Matson by 16.3% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 586 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $79,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. 84.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.