Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX) Shares Purchased by First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. boosted its holdings in Matson, Inc. (NYSE:MATX) by 6.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,663 shares of the shipping company’s stock after buying an additional 107 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in Matson were worth $237,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Matson by 5.7% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,984,076 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $447,810,000 after buying an additional 215,452 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Matson by 4.2% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 911,827 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $119,422,000 after acquiring an additional 36,901 shares during the last quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Matson by 52.1% in the 2nd quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC now owns 356,416 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $46,680,000 after purchasing an additional 122,017 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management lifted its stake in shares of Matson by 18.1% in the 1st quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 282,763 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $31,783,000 after purchasing an additional 43,324 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Matson by 126.5% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 240,117 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $31,448,000 after purchasing an additional 134,092 shares in the last quarter. 84.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Matson from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Matson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 6th.

Matson Stock Performance

Matson stock opened at $159.30 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.29 billion, a PE ratio of 13.25 and a beta of 1.06. Matson, Inc. has a one year low of $88.03 and a one year high of $160.18. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $136.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $128.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13.

Matson (NYSE:MATX) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The shipping company reported $5.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.98 by $0.91. The business had revenue of $962.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $965.73 million. Matson had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 16.89%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 16.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.40 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Matson, Inc. will post 12.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Matson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 7th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. Matson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.31%.

Insider Transactions at Matson

In related news, SVP Laura L. Rascon sold 744 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.13, for a total value of $96,072.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 12,369 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,597,208.97. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Matson news, SVP Laura L. Rascon sold 744 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.13, for a total value of $96,072.72. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 12,369 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,597,208.97. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Richard S. Kinney sold 1,615 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.62, for a total transaction of $215,796.30. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,065,352.26. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 20,712 shares of company stock valued at $2,855,398. 2.32% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.