Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX) Shares Acquired by Prudential Financial Inc.

Prudential Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX) by 12.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 113,244 shares of the shipping company’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,915 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in Matson were worth $15,270,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MATX. IFP Advisors Inc acquired a new position in shares of Matson during the 4th quarter worth $40,000. U S Global Investors Inc. purchased a new position in Matson during the 4th quarter valued at about $111,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in Matson by 339.5% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 901 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $122,000 after acquiring an additional 696 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Matson by 31.4% in the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 1,059 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $143,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Matson by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,229 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $166,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. 84.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Stephens lifted their price objective on Matson from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Matson from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th.

Matson Price Performance

NYSE:MATX opened at $130.73 on Friday. Matson, Inc. has a 12-month low of $100.50 and a 12-month high of $169.12. The firm has a market cap of $4.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.88 and a beta of 1.05. The company’s 50-day moving average is $137.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $140.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Matson (NYSE:MATX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The shipping company reported $3.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.20 by $0.60. The business had revenue of $890.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $851.78 million. Matson had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 16.89%. Research analysts expect that Matson, Inc. will post 13.27 EPS for the current year.

Matson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 6th were issued a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 6th. Matson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 9.69%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Richard S. Kinney sold 1,997 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.11, for a total value of $273,808.67. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,425 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,155,151.75. The trade was a 19.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP John P. Lauer sold 7,985 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.73, for a total transaction of $1,075,819.05. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,394,118.16. This represents a 24.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.05% of the company’s stock.

Matson Profile

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.