Brokerages Set Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX) Price Target at $232.33

Shares of Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX) have been given an average rating of “Buy” by the five research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $232.3333.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Matson from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Matson from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 22nd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Matson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings raised Matson from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Stephens raised their price target on Matson from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th.

Matson Stock Up 0.2%

NYSE:MATX opened at $226.05 on Thursday. Matson has a 52 week low of $86.97 and a 52 week high of $230.74. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $212.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $188.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.11 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11.

Matson (NYSE:MATX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The shipping company reported $4.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.79 by $0.48. Matson had a net margin of 13.41% and a return on equity of 16.94%. The business had revenue of $969.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $893.91 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.92 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Matson will post 16.01 EPS for the current year.

Matson Increases Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Matson news, EVP Christopher A. Scott sold 600 shares of Matson stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.90, for a total value of $131,940.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 9,354 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,056,944.60. This trade represents a 6.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Vic S. Angoco, Jr. sold 2,293 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.76, for a total transaction of $510,788.68. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 12,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,786,059.32. The trade was a 15.49% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 12,462 shares of company stock worth $2,695,832. Corporate insiders own 2.51% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Matson

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in shares of Matson by 8.3% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 41,346 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $5,300,000 after purchasing an additional 3,155 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Matson by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 19,511 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $2,501,000 after purchasing an additional 863 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in shares of Matson by 7.1% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 102,629 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $13,154,000 after purchasing an additional 6,778 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Matson during the 1st quarter worth approximately $78,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in Matson by 11.3% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 24,459 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $3,135,000 after buying an additional 2,492 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.76% of the company’s stock.

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.