Kuuhaku Park Sells 2,500 Shares of Matson (NYSE:MATX) Stock

Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX) SVP Kuuhaku Park sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.19, for a total transaction of $450,475.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 10,984 shares in the company, valued at $1,979,206.96. This represents a 18.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Matson Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of MATX opened at $179.56 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.43 billion, a PE ratio of 13.19 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 company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $167.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $144.98.

Matson (NYSE:MATX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The shipping company reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.18 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Matson, Inc. will post 13.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Matson Dividend Announcement

The firm 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. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 7th. Matson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.58%.

Institutional Trading of Matson

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. SummitTX Capital L.P. raised its holdings in Matson by 42.8% during the first quarter. SummitTX Capital L.P. now owns 72,827 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $11,939,000 after purchasing an additional 21,811 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Matson during the first quarter worth approximately $1,819,000. Cannell & Spears LLC acquired a new stake in Matson during the first quarter worth approximately $225,000. Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in Matson by 421.7% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 26,087 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $4,277,000 after purchasing an additional 21,087 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming raised its holdings in Matson by 86.8% during the first quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 2,858 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $469,000 after purchasing an additional 1,328 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.76% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

About Matson

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.