Peter Heilmann Sells 5,000 Shares of Matson (NYSE:MATX) Stock

Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX) EVP Peter Heilmann sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.15, for a total value of $1,100,750.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 20,506 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,514,395.90. This trade represents a 19.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Matson Stock Performance

Matson stock opened at $223.14 on Friday. Matson, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $86.97 and a fifty-two week high of $230.74. The company has a market capitalization of $6.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.92 and a beta of 1.27. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $206.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of $183.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.89.

Matson (NYSE:MATX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The shipping company reported $4.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.79 by $0.48. The business had revenue of $969.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $893.91 million. Matson had a return on equity of 16.94% and a net margin of 13.41%.The business’s revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.92 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Matson, Inc. will post 16.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Matson Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 6th. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. This is an increase from Matson’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. Matson’s dividend payout ratio is 10.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MATX has been the subject of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded Matson from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Zacks Research raised shares of Matson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Matson from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Matson from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Stephens upped their target price on Matson from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have issued a Buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Matson currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $232.33.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Matson

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Allworth Financial LP bought a new position in Matson in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in Matson during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new position in Matson during the 2nd quarter worth $44,000. SouthState Bank Corp bought a new position in shares of Matson in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Matson in the second quarter worth $28,000. Institutional investors own 84.76% of the company’s stock.

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.