Matson (NYSE:MATX) EVP Sells $1,292,502.87 in Stock

Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX) EVP Peter Heilmann sold 7,173 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.19, for a total value of $1,292,502.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 25,506 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,595,926.14. The trade was a 21.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Matson Stock Down 0.4%

NYSE:MATX traded down $0.64 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $181.08. The stock had a trading volume of 54,798 shares, compared to its average volume of 285,414. 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 company has a market capitalization of $5.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.28 and a beta of 1.30. Matson, Inc. has a 1-year low of $86.97 and a 1-year high of $189.99. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $167.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $144.11.

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

Matson Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Matson by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,671,519 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $453,616,000 after purchasing an additional 21,516 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Matson by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,982,793 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $244,975,000 after acquiring an additional 21,463 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in Matson by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,250,636 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $123,300,000 after acquiring an additional 35,229 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Matson by 27.9% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 590,763 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $65,770,000 after purchasing an additional 128,994 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Matson by 144.9% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 455,133 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $44,872,000 after purchasing an additional 269,310 shares in the last quarter. 84.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.