Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

Matthews International Co. (NASDAQ:MATW)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Friday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $29.47, but opened at $27.09. Matthews International shares last traded at $27.36, with a volume of 138,491 shares trading hands.

The company reported $0.14 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by ($0.12). Matthews International had a positive return on equity of 13.69% and a negative net margin of 3.32%.

Matthews International Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.77%. Matthews International’s dividend payout ratio is currently -51.81%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Matthews International

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MATW. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. purchased a new position in Matthews International in the third quarter valued at about $2,793,000. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Matthews International by 6.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,208,505 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,037,000 after purchasing an additional 76,911 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of Matthews International by 10.3% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 781,592 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,126,000 after purchasing an additional 73,240 shares in the last quarter. Barington Capital Group L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Matthews International by 18.2% during the 3rd quarter. Barington Capital Group L.P. now owns 455,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,556,000 after purchasing an additional 70,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Matthews International by 120.5% in the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 79,861 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,853,000 after purchasing an additional 43,650 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.08% of the company’s stock.

Matthews International Trading Down 9.9 %

The company has a 50 day moving average of $29.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $26.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $822.25 million, a PE ratio of -13.76 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.45.

Matthews International Company Profile

Matthews International Corporation provides brand solutions, memorialization products, and industrial technologies worldwide. It operates through three segments: Memorialization, Industrial Technologies, and SGK Brand Solutions. The Memorialization segment provides bronze and granite memorials, upright granite memorials and monuments, concrete burial vaults, cremation memorialization products, granite benches, flower vases, crypt plates and letters, cremation urns, niche units, cemetery features, and statues, as well as bronze plaques, letters, emblems, vases, lights and photo ceramics, granite monuments, mausoleums, crypts, and flush memorials.