Royce & Associates LP Acquires 57,175 Shares of Matson, Inc. $MATX

Royce & Associates LP grew its holdings in Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX) by 59.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 153,566 shares of the shipping company’s stock after acquiring an additional 57,175 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP’s holdings in Matson were worth $18,973,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in Matson in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its position in Matson by 124.3% in the third quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 249 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in Matson in the second quarter worth $28,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Matson by 57.3% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 258 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. Finally, Torren Management LLC bought a new position in Matson in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. 84.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Matson news, SVP John Warren Sullivan sold 3,331 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.14, for a total transaction of $600,046.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 9,547 shares in the company, valued at $1,719,796.58. This represents a 25.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP John P. Lauer sold 8,603 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.13, for a total value of $1,429,216.39. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 23,738 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,943,593.94. This represents a 26.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 62,513 shares of company stock valued at $10,635,702. 2.51% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on MATX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on Matson in a research report on Monday, April 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $230.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen cut Matson from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 15th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Matson to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $181.25.

Matson Stock Performance

Matson stock opened at $184.61 on Wednesday. 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 stock has a fifty day moving average price of $172.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $149.40. Matson, Inc. has a 52-week low of $86.97 and a 52-week high of $190.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.56 and a beta of 1.30.

Matson (NYSE:MATX) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. Matson had a return on equity of 15.90% and a net margin of 12.92%.The firm had revenue of $757.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $777.55 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.18 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Matson, Inc. will post 13.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Matson Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 7th will be paid 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 dividend payout ratio is currently 10.58%.

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.