Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW) Shares Gap Down Following Analyst Downgrade

Matthews International Corporation (NASDAQ:MATW)’s share price gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday after Zacks Research downgraded the stock from a hold rating to a strong sell rating. The stock had previously closed at $28.69, but opened at $26.84. Matthews International shares last traded at $26.1650, with a volume of 9,887 shares.

Separately, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Matthews International in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Matthews International has a consensus rating of “Sell”.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Matthews International

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Matthews International by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC now owns 402,319 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,619,000 after buying an additional 16,979 shares in the last quarter. Barington Capital Group L.P. increased its stake in Matthews International by 14.3% in the second quarter. Barington Capital Group L.P. now owns 912,804 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,825,000 after acquiring an additional 114,187 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL raised its position in Matthews International by 11.0% during the second quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 1,386,045 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,140,000 after purchasing an additional 137,189 shares in the last quarter. Grizzlyrock Capital LLC acquired a new position in Matthews International during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,518,000. Finally, Kennedy Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Matthews International during the second quarter worth $2,384,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.08% of the company’s stock.

Matthews International Stock Up 2.5%

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $26.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $24.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $870.71 million, a P/E ratio of -35.41 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46.

Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 21st. The company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $318.84 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $290.79 million. Matthews International had a positive return on equity of 8.65% and a negative net margin of 1.63%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Matthews International Corporation will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Matthews International Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st were given a $0.255 dividend. This is a boost from Matthews International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. Matthews International’s dividend payout ratio is -129.11%.

About Matthews International

Matthews International Corporation (NASDAQ:MATW) is a diversified industrial company headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company operates through two primary business segments—Brand Solutions and Memorialization—offering a broad range of products and services designed to meet the needs of industrial manufacturers, brand marketers and the funeral industry worldwide.

In its Brand Solutions segment, Matthews International provides engraving and digital printing systems, automated finishing equipment, thermal management products and electronics assembly solutions.