Matson, Inc. $MATX Stock: Royce & Associates LP Decreases Holdings

Royce & Associates LP reduced its position in Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX) by 17.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 133,094 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 27,368 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP owned approximately 0.45% of Matson worth $29,233,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Matson by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,402 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $462,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Matson by 21.6% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 485 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $107,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Matson by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 30,624 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $5,021,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in shares of Matson by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 14,749 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $2,418,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Provenance Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Matson during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.76% of the company’s stock.

Matson Stock Performance

MATX stock traded down $3.96 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $208.68. The company had a trading volume of 258,299 shares, compared to its average volume of 313,755. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $225.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $195.66. Matson, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $101.98 and a fifty-two week high of $240.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.18 billion, a PE ratio of 11.80 and a beta of 1.33.

Matson (NYSE:MATX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The shipping company reported $6.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.69. The company had revenue of $1.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. Matson had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 14.58%. The business’s revenue was up 26.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.24 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Matson, Inc. will post 18.90 earnings per share for the current year.

Matson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, November 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 5th. Matson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Christopher Scott sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.90, for a total transaction of $131,940.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 9,354 shares in the company, valued at $2,056,944.60. This represents a 6.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Vic Angoco, Jr. sold 2,293 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.76, for a total value of $510,788.68. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 12,507 shares in the company, valued at $2,786,059.32. This represents a 15.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 7,893 shares of company stock worth $1,743,479 in the last three months. 2.51% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MATX has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded Matson from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Matson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 7th. Freedom Broker began coverage on shares of Matson in a research note on Wednesday, September 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $260.00 target price for the company. Stephens increased their target price on shares of Matson from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Matson from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Matson has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $259.25.

Matson Company Profile

Matson, Inc. is a transportation company focused on ocean shipping and logistics. Founded in 1882 by Captain William Matson, the company has a long history of connecting communities and businesses across the Pacific. Matson provides ocean transportation services to Hawaii, Alaska, Guam, Micronesia, and the South Pacific, as well as a service linking China with the U.S. West Coast. Its operations include container shipping and the transport of goods such as vehicles and other cargo. Through its logistics business, Matson also offers freight forwarding, intermodal transportation, and supply chain services.