Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW) Downgraded by Zacks Research to Strong Sell

Zacks Research downgraded shares of Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a research note released on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

MATW has been the subject of several other research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Matthews International from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Matthews International in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Sell”.

Matthews International Stock Up 2.3%

MATW opened at $23.50 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $733.43 million, a P/E ratio of -25.27 and a beta of 1.09. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $26.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $26.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. Matthews International has a 12 month low of $21.95 and a 12 month high of $30.93.

Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW) last released its earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The company reported $0.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.35). Matthews International had a negative net margin of 2.65% and a positive return on equity of 4.51%. The company had revenue of $246.02 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $264.54 million. On average, equities analysts expect that Matthews International will post 0.53 EPS for the current year.

Matthews International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.255 per share. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 10th. Matthews International’s dividend payout ratio is currently -109.68%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Steel Partners Holdings L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Matthews International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $20,084,000. Private Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Matthews International by 201.1% during the fourth quarter. Private Capital Management LLC now owns 1,018,587 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,605,000 after acquiring an additional 680,256 shares in the last quarter. Simcoe Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Matthews International during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $8,763,000. Cannell Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Matthews International in the second quarter worth $5,926,000. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth purchased a new stake in Matthews International in the fourth quarter worth $5,242,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.08% of the company’s stock.

Matthews International Company Profile

Matthews International Corporation (NASDAQ:MATW) is a diversified industrial company headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company operates through two primary business segments—Brand Solutions and Memorialization—offering a broad range of products and services designed to meet the needs of industrial manufacturers, brand marketers and the funeral industry worldwide.

In its Brand Solutions segment, Matthews International provides engraving and digital printing systems, automated finishing equipment, thermal management products and electronics assembly solutions.