Matson (NYSE:MATX) Upgraded to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Matson (NYSE:MATX) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday.

Separately, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Matson from $108.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st.

Matson Stock Performance

NYSE:MATX opened at $107.48 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.71 billion, a PE ratio of 12.83 and a beta of 1.12. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $110.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $104.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. Matson has a 12 month low of $61.51 and a 12 month high of $122.99.

Matson (NYSE:MATX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The shipping company reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $788.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $733.60 million. Matson had a return on equity of 12.71% and a net margin of 9.60%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.10 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Matson will post 8.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Matson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 8th were issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.19%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 7th. Matson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Christopher A. Scott sold 1,171 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.83, for a total transaction of $126,268.93. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 12,958 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,397,261.14. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.32% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Matson

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Matson in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new stake in Matson in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Security National Bank acquired a new stake in Matson in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Matson by 109.6% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 415 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares during the period. Finally, Evermay Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Matson in the fourth quarter valued at about $66,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.76% of the company’s stock.

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.