Reviewing Proficient Auto Logistics (NASDAQ:PAL) & Matson (NYSE:MATX)

Proficient Auto Logistics (NASDAQ:PAL) and Matson (NYSE:MATX) are both transportation companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, risk, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, profitability and dividends.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Proficient Auto Logistics and Matson, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Proficient Auto Logistics	1	1	2	0	2.25
Matson	0	5	1	0	2.17

Proficient Auto Logistics currently has a consensus target price of $12.50, suggesting a potential upside of 103.92%. Matson has a consensus target price of $131.67, suggesting a potential upside of 41.80%. Given Proficient Auto Logistics’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Proficient Auto Logistics is more favorable than Matson.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Proficient Auto Logistics and Matson”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Proficient Auto Logistics	$240.85 million	0.71	-$8.48 million	N/A	N/A
Matson	$3.42 billion	0.86	$476.40 million	$14.79	6.28

Matson has higher revenue and earnings than Proficient Auto Logistics.

Profitability

This table compares Proficient Auto Logistics and Matson’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Proficient Auto Logistics	-2.87%	-1.02%	-0.68%
Matson	14.26%	18.90%	10.95%

Volatility and Risk

Proficient Auto Logistics has a beta of 2.49, suggesting that its stock price is 149% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Matson has a beta of 1.21, suggesting that its stock price is 21% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

84.8% of Matson shares are owned by institutional investors. 13.9% of Proficient Auto Logistics shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 2.1% of Matson shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Matson beats Proficient Auto Logistics on 7 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Proficient Auto Logistics

Proficient Auto Logistics, Inc. focuses on providing auto transportation and logistics services in North America. It primarily focuses on transporting and delivering finished vehicles from automotive production facilities, ports of entry, and rail yards to a network of automotive dealerships. The company operates approximately 1,130 auto transport vehicles and trailers, including 615 company-owned transport vehicles and trailers. It serves auto companies, electric vehicle producers, auto dealers, auto auctions, rental car companies, and auto leasing companies. The company was formerly known as AH Acquisition Corp. and changed its name to Proficient Auto Logistics, Inc. in October 2023. The company was incorporated in 2023 and is based in Jacksonville, Florida.

About Matson

Matson, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of ocean transportation and logistics services. It operates through two segments, Ocean Transportation and Logistics. The Ocean Transportation segment offers ocean freight transportation services to the domestic non-contiguous economies of Hawaii, Japan, Alaska, and Guam, as well as to other island economies in Micronesia. It primarily transports dry containers of mixed commodities, refrigerated commodities, food products, beverages, building materials, automobiles, and household goods; livestock; seafood; general sustenance cargo; and garments, footwear, e-commerce, and other retail merchandise. This segment also operates an expedited service from China to Long Beach, California, and various islands in the South Pacific, as well as Okinawa, Japan; and provides stevedoring, refrigerated cargo services, inland transportation, container equipment maintenance, and other terminal services to ocean carriers on the Hawaiian islands of Oahu, Hawaii, Maui, and Kauai, as well as in the Alaska locations of Anchorage, Kodiak, and Dutch Harbor. In addition, it offers vessel management and container transshipment services. The Logistics segment provides multimodal transportation brokerage services, including domestic and international rail intermodal, long-haul and regional highway trucking, specialized hauling, flat-bed and project, less-than-truckload, and expedited freight services; less-than-container load consolidation and freight forwarding services; warehousing and distribution services; supply chain management services, and non-vessel operating common carrier freight forwarding services. It serves the U.S. military, freight forwarders, retailers, consumer goods, automobile manufacturers, and other customers. The company was formerly known as Alexander & Baldwin Holdings, Inc. and changed its name to Matson, Inc. in June 2012. Matson, Inc. was founded in 1882 and is headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii.