Christopher Scott Sells 3,305 Shares of Matson (NYSE:MATX) Stock

Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX) SVP Christopher Scott sold 3,305 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.14, for a total value of $595,362.70. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 11,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,022,611.92. The trade was a 22.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Matson Price Performance

MATX stock opened at $179.17 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $167.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $143.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.16 and a beta of 1.30. Matson, Inc. has a 1 year low of $86.97 and a 1 year high of $189.99.

Matson (NYSE:MATX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The shipping company reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.20. Matson had a return on equity of 15.90% and a net margin of 12.92%.The business had revenue of $757.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $777.55 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.18 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Matson, Inc. will post 13.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Matson Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 7th. Matson’s payout ratio is 10.58%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Matson

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in Matson by 144.9% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 455,133 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $44,872,000 after purchasing an additional 269,310 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Matson in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,415,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Matson in the 4th quarter valued at $17,276,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in Matson by 27.9% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 590,763 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $65,770,000 after acquiring an additional 128,994 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royce & Associates LP acquired a new stake in Matson during the 3rd quarter worth $9,503,000. 84.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MATX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of Matson in a report on Monday, April 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $230.00 price objective on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Matson to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered Matson from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, March 15th. Finally, Stephens raised their price target on Matson from $190.00 to $213.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $181.25.

Matson Company Profile

Matson, Inc (NYSE: MATX) is a U.S.-based provider of ocean transportation and supply chain logistics services with a focus on Pacific trade lanes. The company operates a fleet of container ships that regularly service Hawaii, Alaska, Guam, Micronesia and other Pacific islands, as well as mainland U.S. ports. Matson’s ocean transportation segment offers scheduled liner services, expedited shipping options and specialized project cargo handling for industries ranging from retail to heavy machinery.

In addition to its core liner operations, Matson offers ocean transportation services between Asia and the U.S.