Matson (MATX) Competitors

Kirby (NYSE:KEX) and Matson (NYSE:MATX) are both mid-cap transportation companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, risk, dividends, earnings, media sentiment, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and profitability.

Do analysts recommend KEX or MATX?

Kirby currently has a consensus target price of $130.00, suggesting a potential upside of 10.69%. Matson has a consensus target price of $138.33, suggesting a potential upside of 20.58%. Given Matson's higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Matson is more favorable than Kirby.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Kirby	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00
Matson	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50

Does the media refer more to KEX or MATX?

In the previous week, Kirby had 9 more articles in the media than Matson. MarketBeat recorded 18 mentions for Kirby and 9 mentions for Matson. Kirby's average media sentiment score of 0.73 beat Matson's score of 0.71 indicating that Kirby is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Kirby	12 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Matson	3 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	5 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Is KEX or MATX more profitable?

Matson has a net margin of 14.72% compared to Kirby's net margin of 9.02%. Matson's return on equity of 20.02% beat Kirby's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Kirby	9.02%	9.81%	5.50%
Matson	14.72%	20.02%	11.49%

Which has preferable earnings and valuation, KEX or MATX?

Matson has higher revenue and earnings than Kirby. Matson is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Kirby, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Kirby	$3.27B	2.02	$286.71M	$5.05	23.26
Matson	$3.42B	1.09	$476.40M	$15.18	7.56

Which has more volatility & risk, KEX or MATX?

Kirby has a beta of 0.96, suggesting that its stock price is 4% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Matson has a beta of 1.28, suggesting that its stock price is 28% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Do insiders and institutionals hold more shares of KEX or MATX?

96.2% of Kirby shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 84.8% of Matson shares are held by institutional investors. 0.9% of Kirby shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 2.1% of Matson shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Matson beats Kirby on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.